The federal government is in favor of expanding the Saguenay–St. Lawrence Marine Park. The announcement could also have been made during the UN conference on biodiversity (COP15), but the Legault government says it is waiting for the recommendations of the committee it has appointed to assess “the relevance” of this project. However, this committee pleads for the expansion of this protected area, learned The duty.
The idea of extending the boundaries of the marine park has been raised several times since its creation in 1998 to ensure the protection of the beluga. You should know that with an area of 1245 km2, it covers barely 40% of the essential summer habitat of this cetacean classified as “endangered” by the federal government. The latter has an obligation to protect the species, under the Species at Risk Act.
The Trudeau government is also in favor of expanding the boundaries of the province’s only marine park, which is managed by Ottawa and Quebec. “A potential expansion of the Saguenay–St. of this population in the face of habitat disturbances caused by climate change and the expected increase in maritime traffic,” said the office of the federal Minister of the Environment, Steven Guilbeault, in a written response on Monday.
The need to expand the boundaries based on critical beluga habitat would mean increasing the park area to 2800 km2. The limits of the protected area would thus extend to around L’Isle-aux-Coudres, upstream, and Trois-Pistoles, downstream, including the Cacouna sector, considered a nursery for the beluga.
Committee in Quebec
For Ottawa, the need to move forward is such that a joint announcement by the two levels of government could have taken place within the framework of COP15, according to what emerges from the information obtained by The duty. But the Legault government is not ready to make a decision on this project called for by experts in the protection of the beluga and the ecosystems of the St. Lawrence.
In interview at To have to last Friday, the Minister of the Environment of Quebec, Benoit Charette, has also confirmed that the CAQ government has not yet made a decision. Is Quebec resisting in this file involving the federal government? “There is no resistance. The goal is to do things right. It is clear in our mind that we were not announcing new territories during the COP,” he argued.
“There is no favorable or unfavorable bias. We just want to do things in order to make sure we make the right decision,” added the Minister. He specified that a committee of experts has been set up by the government “to assess the added value, or the relevance of expanding the park”. However, this work would not be finished yet, said Mr. Charette. “A mandate was given to a scientific committee a few weeks ago on the issue of the marine park. Their report should be presented to me by the end of January. »
The duty however, learned from sources familiar with the matter that this committee made specific “recommendations” that militate in favor of the project. According to what emerges from the work of the committee mandated by the Legault government, the expansion of the marine park is presented as being the “preferred tool” for collaboration between Quebec and Ottawa to “enhance the protection of the St. Lawrence”.
The committee’s experts, who come in particular from the Ministry of the Environment, the Fight against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks, but also from the management of the Marine Park, suggest that steps be taken with a view to drafting of the “understanding” needed to move forward. Under the Act respecting the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park, it is possible to modify “the limits” with the agreement of Quebec and Ottawa.
The committee also believes that it would be relevant to reflect on the means to be taken to protect other sectors of the St. Lawrence estuary that would not be covered by the expansion of the park. The Government of Quebec has already done part of the work by granting, in 2020, the status of “territorial reserves for the purposes of protected areas” to different areas of the estuary.
“Logical Solution”
For the director general of the Society for Nature and Parks of Quebec, Alain Branchaud, the work of the committee seems to indicate that the fruit is ripe for the realization of the project. “With clear recommendations in favor of expanding the Saguenay−St. Lawrence Marine Park, the Government of Quebec no longer has any excuses for not moving forward. Since the start of COP15, Quebec civil society is still waiting for concrete announcements for the protection of biodiversity,” he said on Monday.
As part of the international negotiations taking place at COP15, the States must agree to protect 30% of marine environments by 2030. Currently, Quebec protects only 10% of its marine environments, which which means that it will have to triple the area of protected areas in the St. Lawrence, and this, in just over seven years.
President and Scientific Director of the Group for Research and Education on Marine Mammals, Robert Michaud believes that the expansion of the park “is a logical solution and probably the best solution given the urgency of better protecting belugas and their essential habitat. “.
Specialist in marine ecosystems and cetaceans, Lyne Morissette affirms that the expansion of the park would be “logical, commendable and effective”. “It is a jewel that not only serves as an example on an international scale, but also connects with other protected areas in the Atlantic with which we share the same species, but also the same individuals, as we can see it with humpback whales. »