Several scientists have been denouncing for years the attitude and denial of the Government of Quebec, previous governments and other governments in Canada regarding the protection of woodland caribou, a species threatened in Canada since 2003 and vulnerable in Quebec since 2005. Beyond its legal status, this species has always played a crucial role for Indigenous nations of the boreal forest. Ignoring scientific advice, the Quebec government allowed forest management in critical habitats identified by caribou experts and Aboriginal representatives.
It seems inconceivable to us that in 2022, the efforts required to protect an endangered species will be politicized, when for decades, both in Quebec and in Canada, a public discourse favorable to the conservation of biodiversity has been held. Canada is also a signatory to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, which is based, among other things, on the “sustainable use of biological diversity”. In the case of woodland caribou, the isolated herds of Val-d’Or, Charlevoix and Gaspésie are now on the verge of extinction.
University and government scientists know what needs to be done to conserve woodland caribou, and that means protecting large areas of mature forest above all else. The risks that forest management poses to the viability of these herds have been clearly communicated to the Ministère de la Forêt, de la Faune et des Parcs for a good number of years, without these warnings being translated into action by policy makers.
By failing to apply effective measures, the Quebec government has turned a blind eye to the decline of these herds, and the lack of concrete action now threatens other caribou populations further north. Enclosure is only a smokescreen if the department does not develop a coherent habitat restoration and recovery strategy for each of these herds. Since it will take several years to restore caribou habitat in the boreal forest, simple enclosure does not appear viable and is not based on conclusive scientific data.
The government of Quebec must accept the harsh reality: its management of the boreal forest is not ecologically sustainable since it leads irremediably to the disappearance of the forest-dwelling caribou. Furthermore, the Government of Quebec is ignoring the solutions for sustainable forest management that the scientific community has been advocating for more than 20 years and which guarantee the preservation of biodiversity through diversified harvesting practices and management strategies that involve the permanent retention of a greater proportion of mature forests.
These solutions should have already been implemented several years ago. To claim the contrary is tantamount to denying the obvious, while the opposition between caribou and jobs testifies to an electoralism that no longer has its place in our society.
* Also signed this letter: Alexis Achim (Université Laval), Jérôme Cimon-Morin (Université Laval), Steeve Côté (Université Laval), Pierre Drapeau (UQAM), Daniel Fortin (Université Laval), Fanie Pelletier (Université de Sherbrooke) , Denis Réale (UQAM), Martin-Hugues St-Laurent (UQAR) and Jean-Pierre Tremblay (Laval University)