(Quebec) Quebec warns the federal government about saving the caribou: if we want to save the species at all costs, we could lose jobs, as during the federal moratorium on cod.
Posted at 6:12 p.m.
Ottawa threatens to intervene directly to save the caribou, under the law on species at risk, and demanded a plan from Quebec no later than April 20. However, Quebec argues that this is its area of jurisdiction.
The Minister of Forests, Wildlife and Parks, Pierre Dufour, said Wednesday that negotiations are continuing and that the consultations he launched are still underway, namely the Independent Commission on Woodland and Mountain Caribou.
In a scrum at the end of the meeting of the Council of Ministers, he warned the federal government against being too hasty.
He recalled the federal decision to impose a moratorium on cod fishing on the east coast of the country in 1992, which caused the loss of 40,000 jobs, but which nevertheless saved the species.
“Our commission is a bit like this perspective that we wanted to demonstrate (sic), pleaded Mr. Dufour. It is to go to those territories where the caribou are, to get the pulse of the population. »
He recalled that consultations are currently taking place throughout Quebec until May 17.
In a letter dated April 8, federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault gave the Quebec government until April 20 to inform him of his caribou and habitat protection plan.
If the plan is deemed insufficient, Mr. Guilbeault had specified that he would recommend to the cabinet to issue an order protecting parts of the habitat of animals on Quebec territory, regardless of the objections of the province.
The objective of the Commission is to “gather the opinions of the interested parties concerning the two theoretical scenarios, proposed by the Ministry of Forests, Wildlife and Parks (MFFP)” or on “any idea which would make it possible to find a realistic balance and defensible to reconcile the objective of protecting the woodland caribou and the economic interests at stake”.
The first scenario proposed by the MFFP would aim to increase the area under restoration of the deer habitat zone and would have an impact on current forestry activities and could threaten jobs. The second would include a smaller caribou habitat restoration zone and would have no additional impact on forestry activities and would therefore not threaten jobs.
The consultations and plans proposed by Quebec have been criticized by environmental groups and scientists.
The woodland caribou was designated as a “vulnerable” species in 2005 under Quebec’s Act respecting threatened or vulnerable species, while the mountain caribou was designated as a “threatened” species in 2009.
According to data from the province, from 2005 to 2016, the sum of individuals of all estimated woodland caribou populations in Quebec ranged from 5,635 to 9,981. As for mountain caribou, there were around 40 in 2020.