Quebecers refuse to sacrifice their health and the environment in the name of mining

This text is part of the special section Mines and natural resources

Last August, the results of a Léger survey commissioned by the Coalition Québec mieux mine were published. The results were clear: Quebecers are not ready to sacrifice their health and the environment for mining companies.

“The results really delighted and amazed us; this demonstrates the population’s support for an ambitious reform governing mining activity,” says Rodrigue Turgeon, environmental lawyer, spokesperson for the Coalition Québec Meilleur Mine (QMM) and co-responsible for the national program at MiningWatch Canada. . He believes that these answers are proof of the disconnect between the will of the population and outdated laws. The 18-question survey, conducted by the firm Léger in July 2022 with 995 respondents from across Quebec, was carried out in the run-up to the fall provincial election campaign.

An aware population

The survey allowed the Coalition to see that Quebecers wanted change, despite the government’s rhetoric. “We were pleasantly surprised,” reports the D^D Claudel Pétrin-Desrosiers, President of the Quebec Association of Physicians for the Environment, one of the member organizations of the Coalition. It must be said that the population is increasingly questioning the acquired rights of mining companies, their lack of transparency and the effects on the health of these operations, such as the nickel files in the Port of Quebec and the Horne smelter highlighted.

Along the same lines, the survey reports that more than 2 out of 3 people (68%) consider that the mining industry “generates significant negative impacts on the environment”, and 81% agree that old mines must respect the same emission standards for arsenic and other metals as everywhere else in Quebec. Nearly 90% of respondents said they strongly or somewhat agreed with the ban on dumping mining waste in any lake, river or sensitive ecological environment.

Finally, 79% of Quebecers say that we must prioritize health and the environment. “This means that some mines have to cease their activity,” explains Mr. Turgeon. Indeed, “it is illusory to speak of good health if our planet is not healthy”, recalls the D^D Petrin-Desrosiers.

The survey reveals the evolution of Quebecers’ positions on the mining industry. Respondents came from all regions of Quebec, not just the affected regions. “We are delighted to see that we have the support of the whole population,” says the spokesperson. Similarly, support does not just come from environmental groups; the Coalition brings together some forty organizations from all walks of life: citizens’ committees, union organizations of mining workers, pro-environment organizations, national and local associations, indigenous communities… “It reaches many people who see mines as a threat to their living environment,” explains Mr. Turgeon.

Mines for ecological transition?

Despite everything, one question divided Quebecers in this survey: the need to reduce mining to fight against climate change. “More than half of the people still agree. That said, this ambivalence has everything to do with the strong communication campaign of governments and the mining industry,” said Mr. Turgeon. Indeed, the discourse of industry as that of politics includes the mining industry as a solution to the climate crisis, since it provides the critical and strategic metals that go into the manufacture of batteries, in particular.

An argument that Mr. Turgeon brushes aside, affirming that only 3 mines out of the 23 in operation in Quebec exploit critical and strategic minerals. To the mines already in operation would be added new operations resulting in more waste and greenhouse gas emissions. “The government presents this as a measure for socio-ecological transition, but the gesture goes to the detriment of the quality of the environment”, supports the D^D Claudel Petrin-Desrosiers. And if the economic argument is also often mentioned to justify these operations (creating jobs in the regions), the economic costs on health are rarely calculated.

A movement in motion

After the completion of this survey, the Coalition published a map whose effects were shattering, according to Rodrigue Turgeon. It showed the mining boom affecting the Outaouais, Lanaudière, Laurentides and Mauricie regions, which are not used to the presence of these industries. “It was a rude awakening. Since then, several municipalities have called for a reform of the Mining Act, to ensure that land use planning decisions are made by municipalities and Aboriginal communities rather than left in the hands of industries,” reports Mr. Turgeon. The theme of the mining occupation in recreational and vacationing regions has thus imposed itself in the electoral campaign. “I have the impression that we are changing the standard of social acceptability”, believes the D^D Petrin-Desrosiers.

In November, the Coalition and a few partners met at a convention with Blanchette Vézina, then newly appointed Minister of Natural Resources and Forests. The latter subsequently announced public consultations on the supervision of mining companies. “What actions will actually be taken remains to be seen, but we hope that they will reflect the will of the population,” concludes Mr. Turgeon. “The next step is to see if this will materialize and give political measures”, supports the D^D Claudel Petrin-Desrosiers.

This special content was produced by the Special Publications team of the Duty, relating to marketing. The drafting of Duty did not take part.

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