Minister Steven Guilbeault, we welcome your intention to protect the three most endangered caribou herds in Quebec, but more must be done.
In Gaspésie and Saguenay, other caribou herds are dying because we continue to destroy their habitat. Despite the urgency to act, the Quebec government is constantly postponing the submission of a strategy that would give hope for its recovery wherever it is threatened. He ignores the recommendations of his own independent commission on the subject as well as the opinion of scientists who have been sounding the alarm for years.
We hereby, mothers and grandmothers from all regions of Quebec, add our voices to that of the Innu nation which asks you to intervene by filing an emergency decree. In solidarity, we are going to the front with indigenous communities, caribou experts and environmental groups to defend this species at the heart of their identity, but also emblematic for all of Quebec.
What are we going to tell our grandchildren when we show them pictures of caribou or teach them to count with quarters?
“Do you see this beautiful animal? Not so long ago, he lived in Gaspésie, Saguenay, Abitibi and also in Charlevoix. The Quebec government preferred to prioritize the very short-term interests of a handful of forestry companies rather than protect this species which dates back more than a million years. »
Should we add to the story that the federal government did not have the courage to prevent this tragedy?
Mr. Guilbeault, Canada has adopted a law to protect endangered species. You have a duty, as Minister of Environment and Climate Change, to act before it is too late for all the herds at risk of disappearing.
We know that the situation is delicate, that the most sovereignist among us could accuse you of interfering in Quebec politics. However, we believe on the contrary that it is YOUR duty. We have several levels of government, each of which has their responsibilities.
We ask you to take yours. We ask you to act under the Species at Risk Act. We ask you to do this now.
For our children and all those who will follow.
*The full list of signatories can be viewed here.