(Carleton) Paul St-Pierre Plamondon promises to “support” the McInnis cement plant in its search for new technologies to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The PQ leader is not closing the door to financial assistance from the state to green the plant.
Posted at 6:46 p.m.
“At this stage, the aid will be one of support and identification of technologies that make it possible to substantially reduce emissions,” explained the leader of the Parti Québécois (PQ) on the sidelines of an announcement in Carleton. As for financial assistance, “it will be something to negotiate if ever the government goes further and imposes more than what was at least agreed in terms of biomass. »
In the past, Ciment McInnis has regularly promised to reduce its GHG emissions, for example by using forest biomass as an alternative fuel, but this has still not been done. The Parti Québécois promises to force the factory to first respect its initial commitments.
“For now, I don’t want to be too much in hypothetical scenarios, on a case-by-case basis. […] remember that we have nevertheless reserved one billion for the just transition. It is aimed above all at workers, but also at supporting the transformation of the economy, but I would not commit myself to a company that to date has been reluctant to comply, ”said Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon. .
He argues that “each individual case will be assessed”.
The Parti Québécois has tabled an environmental plan to achieve a target reduction of 45% of GHGs compared to 2010 levels by 2030. The industry sector alone must reduce its emissions by 22% (17% combustion , 5% processes) to reach the PQ target.
According to the PQ, the activities of the cement plant are compatible with the green plan of the political formation “to the extent that the commitments of this company, which had been clearly made in relation to biomass, are respected”.
“As part of the plan that we are implementing, we are reducing in all possible ways with current technology the emissions related to their activities. Which is not the case right now [pour la cimenterie]they have like a free pass where the company does not meet its obligations that it had taken at the time and there is just no follow-up”, he lamented.
The PQ candidate in Bonaventure, Alexis Deschênes accuses the Minister of the Environment, Benoit Charette, of not having “put his panties” in the file of the cement plant.
“What we want in Bonaventure is for the cement plant to work, it’s there, but to pollute as little as possible. And the Minister of the Environment just has to use the legal powers at his disposal to ensure that the standards are met,” he argued.
Ciment McInnis has become in 2020 the biggest polluter in Quebec. The industrial complex located in Port-Daniel, in Gaspésie, released into the atmosphere more than 1.2 million tonnes of GHGs in 2020. This is an increase of nearly 200,000 tonnes compared to 2019, according to the most recent inventory from the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change.
The company now emits more greenhouse gases than the Jean-Gaulin de Valéro refinery in Lévis and that of Suncor in Montreal.