Despite criticism and opposition, the Government of Quebec is moving forward with its regulation which allows it to quintuple the quantities of nickel particles in the air daily on its territory.
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As of April 28, the Clean Air Regulation will come into effect. The Council of Ministers recently issued the decree enacting it, confirming that the new standard for nickel in the air will increase to 70 nanograms per cubic meter (ng/m3) per day, as well as 20 ng/m3 on average per year.
The current standard is 14 ng/m3 at all times.
However, many scientists, citizens of Limoilou and elsewhere opposed it. The mayor of Quebec, Bruno Marchand, also opposes the increase after hearing the explanations of experts from the government and regional public health.
“The Interdepartmental Nickel Standard Review Committee, whose work was tabled in March 2019, concluded that it was both beneficial and safe to modify the nickel standard prescribed by the Regulation respecting purification of the atmosphere, in order to obtain an optimal solution on the economic, environmental and social levels”, pleads the government in its press release.
“The annual standard is the most widely used standard internationally, with several states not applying a daily standard. »
More details to come.