An anonymous group claims an act of “sabotage” on the site of the future Northvolt factory. In a message broadcast on Monday, they claim to have driven nails into trees to prevent them from being felled. The company says it is inspecting its land to verify “the veracity” of this information.
“We took the initiative to oppose this deforestation by inserting steel bars and nails into the trunks of trees that are threatened by the construction of the factory. While having minimal impact on tree health, they pose a significant risk to heavy machinery,” the group states in its message.
This type of action, which can damage logging equipment, has already been used in the past elsewhere in Canada and the United States by environmental activists to stop logging.
However, we do not specify the number of trees that would have been targeted or the sector of the site that would have been targeted.
The group says it wants to “give weapons to the forest” and at the same time describes the battery component factory project as a “destructive project” for biodiversity. “We must attack this machine for crushing living things by targeting its weak points. Let’s sabotage the equipment, block the construction sites and harass the elected officials in the pay of the industry. The environmental movement must redouble its ardor,” he underlines in his message.
He also denounces public financial support for this project linked to “car culture”, at a time when “public transport companies are undergoing a wave of budget cuts”.
“We have taken note of the information circulating to this effect and our teams are verifying the veracity of this information. We deplore the use of this type of tactic which carries significant risks for the safety of workers and surrounding communities,” Northvolt responded Monday afternoon.
Request for injunction
Work to fell trees and destroy wetlands on the site was stopped last week, following the filing of a request for a provisional injunction from the Quebec Environmental Law Center ( CQDE). The organization is calling for a halt to the work authorized by the Legault government.
In the request for a provisional injunction, we highlight the fact that the Legault government refused last year to carry out a real estate project on the same site.
Experts from the Quebec Ministry of the Environment then justified their decision by emphasizing the rich biodiversity of the land, the essential nature of the natural environments for the region and the “impressive diversity” of the fauna on the site. The data provided to Duty by the ministry report in particular the presence of 21 threatened or vulnerable species. And at least 142 species of birds frequent the site, some of which are threatened.
The hearing, scheduled for last Friday at the Montreal courthouse, was postponed until Tuesday morning, 9:00 a.m. Northvolt has made a commitment not to resume felling trees before 3:00 p.m. Tuesday.