The Quebec government’s decision to fence off another endangered caribou herd and kill any wolves that approach it worries environmentalists, who say the province is once again delaying a long-promised plan to restore the caribou. species.
After installing a fence around the habitat of the seven remaining animals from a herd in Val-d’Or, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, the government says that herds from the Charlevoix and Gaspé regions will be the next to live behind enclosure.
The Ministry of Wildlife has confirmed that construction is underway to enclose the entire Charlevoix herd, north of Quebec, whose size is estimated at less than 20 animals. In Gaspé, the whole herd will not be in an enclosure, but the pregnant females will be captured and transported to fenced areas where they will give birth and raise their young for a few months before being released in the fall.
The government has also hired a trapping group, the Fédération des trappeurs managers du Québec, to “step up” a program to trap and kill wolves and other predators that threaten caribou.
In an email, the Quebec government said these measures are considered temporary, adding that they offer the best chance of ensuring that animals do not die in the short term.
“The enclosure helps protect the caribou from predation and mortality, and they have access to an abundant supply of quality food and water, all under the supervision of veterinarians,” said spokesperson Mila. Roy. Other measures to protect the caribou, including the preservation of its habitat and the dismantling of forest roads, are already underway, she added.
Martin-Hugues St-Laurent, a biologist at the University of Quebec at Rimouski, however, believes that locking up animals and killing predators is tantamount to a hospital sending a patient to intensive care in a last-ditch attempt to save him.
While such measures are sometimes appropriate, he explained that they don’t mean much without strong action to protect animal habitats.
“Putting (animals) in enclosures to protect them from predators without protecting the habitat is doomed to failure,” he said in an interview. It gives the impression that we are doing something, but we are not doing anything effective. “
Mr. St-Laurent said human interference is the reason there are too many predators.
He mentioned that caribou depend on old growth forests to protect themselves from predators and provide lichen for food. Over time, the forestry industry has removed much of the old growth forest and replaced it with younger trees. Logging and hunting roads offer wolves convenient ways to access their prey, noted St-Laurent.
The president of the environmental group Action boréale said he believed that Quebec did not intend to take significant measures to protect the caribou, stressing that the government had not tabled its long-promised action plan for the recovery. of the species.
Instead, the government announced last week that it was forming an “independent commission” that will consult with stakeholders and citizens in areas where caribou are found. The government said the commission’s report will be released in 2022 and the action plan will come into effect in 2023, after the next provincial election. The government has also announced that nearly 155,000 hectares will be safe from logging until 2028.
The commission will be headed by Nancy Gélinas – an expert in forest economics – but does not include any caribou expert.
The Quebec Environmental Law Center said in a statement, “very concerned” by this delay, which it described as “totally unjustified” given the urgency of the situation. The group said it is considering all options to protect the caribou and is not ruling out legal action to push the federal government into action.
Mr Jacob said he believes that by delaying his action plan, the government hopes to “buy time” until the smaller herds naturally die off. He said the government’s conservation efforts, including closing some 160 kilometers of the thousands of kilometers of forest roads in Quebec, are far from sufficient.
“The government of Quebec is, in my opinion, looking for the answer it wants, which is to say that it is too late for the caribou,” he summed up in a recent interview.
Both Mr. Jacob and Mr. St-Laurent believe that it takes no more time to figure out how to save the caribou, which they describe as one of the most studied species in Canada. They said experts agree that what is needed is the immediate closure of logging roads and the conservation and restoration of critical forests where the animals live. Mr. Jacob said adding animals to some of the smaller herds, such as the Val-d’Or and Charlevoix populations, could give them a better chance of surviving.
The government of Quebec, meanwhile, insists on its commitment to save the caribou, and it has argued that its commission is the right vehicle to create a “consensual and pragmatic plan” for the survival of the species.
Mr. St-Laurent said the fight to save the caribou is national in scope, adding that governments across Canada have found themselves “trapped” between saving the caribou and realizing short-term economic gains through industries such as forestry.
Mr. Jacob summed up the idea more succinctly: “When the two clash, the caribou and forestry, it’s always the wild animal that disappears. “