During his opening speech to the parliamentary session on October 19, Prime Minister François Legault announced that the government of Quebec would “definitely give up extracting hydrocarbons on its territory”. While this is a step in the right direction, it is pointless to design a plan to tackle climate change without considering its impact on the most marginalized populations. The League of Rights and Freedoms (LDL) therefore reminds the Quebec government that it cannot fight the climate crisis without taking concrete actions to improve the economic, social and cultural rights of the population, in particular by promoting the rights to health, a healthy environment, housing, equality and dignity.
The day after this announcement, Mr. Legault returned to the subject by raising the possibility that the government would compensate gas exploration companies in Quebec for the inevitable loss of their permits. Quietly, the government is raising the specter of threats of prosecution from these companies, which are already piling up at the door of the state in the hundreds of millions, even billions of dollars. At the other end of the spectrum, several environmental groups have expressed their dissatisfaction with this scenario. They are asking the government not to give in to pressure from these companies. A report from the Center québécois du droit de l’environnement published last June on this issue is clear: the government has all the sovereignty required to put an end to the exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons in Quebec without compensating the parties. oil and gas companies.
The LDL joins its voice to those of environmental organizations in denouncing from the outset any decision that would have the effect of compensating hypothetical polluting profits which, obviously, would never have materialized.
In addition, the LDL is of the opinion that this government announcement is akin to a greenwashing test (greenwashing). Indeed, banning the activities of an industrial sector that is already factually shut down does not lead to any real improvement in the protection of the province’s ecosystems.
Ironically enough, during this same speech of October 19, Mr. Legault only mentioned lip service “to look at means to help Quebeckers.” […] to face [l’]huge increase in the cost of living, among other things in the grocery sector and then in housing ”. In the midst of the housing crisis, such a starving declaration was certainly not up to the problems to be resolved, since it is not linked to any concrete action aimed at ensuring respect for the rights to housing, health and dignity. or equality.
Even if we must welcome the government’s decision to finally put an end to the exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons in Quebec, it would be unacceptable for this decision to divert precious public funds (those envisaged for compensation for companies) which must urgently be intended to tighten the meshes of the social fabric. In this sense, it appears all the more unacceptable to seek to compensate for the “potential” profits of companies that have devastated Quebec ecosystems and contributed to the climate crisis on a planetary scale rather than adopting a concrete plan to achieve these. human rights in Quebec.