The Trudeau government is extending consultations on the emergency decree it plans to impose in Quebec to protect three caribou herds on the brink of extinction. Ottawa is still hoping that the Legault government will present a “strategy” to save the species, while the CAQ ministers have already indicated their refusal to participate in federal consultations.
“Following the request of several Indigenous communities in Quebec and stakeholders, we are announcing today that it will be extended by four weeks, until September 15, 2024,” announced the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Steven Guilbeault, in a press release on Tuesday.
“This extension aims to provide more time for the various stakeholders concerned to participate adequately in these important consultations, while respecting the urgent nature of the situation,” he added.
At the same time, the federal government reaffirmed its desire to see the Quebec government act by presenting a provincial strategy for protecting forest caribou, which was promised and then postponed several times.
“We remain open to collaborating and supporting the Government of Quebec in implementing such a strategy. If Quebec takes sufficient measures, the implementation of the federal decree will not be necessary,” repeated Minister Guilbeault. “However, without an adequate strategy and given the threat to the caribou, we have a legal responsibility to intervene to ensure the survival of the species.”
The federal government’s decree aims to protect three of the 13 herds in Quebec: those of Val-d’Or and Charlevoix, which now live in captivity, and the Pipmuacan, which survives northeast of Lac-Saint-Jean. The territory of the latter has already been targeted for the creation of a protected area, but the project was rejected in 2020 by the Legault government.
4% of “forestry possibilities”
According to calculations by Quebec’s Chief Forester, the decree in preparation would potentially reduce the province’s annual forestry possibilities by barely 4%.
The Legault government, however, sees this as a “unilateral and illegitimate decision by the federal government, which is categorically rejected by Quebec,” according to a letter sent in July by the Legault government to the Trudeau government. Ottawa’s approach “constitutes an unspeakable affront and is in opposition to respect for the sharing of constitutional powers between the levels of government,” according to Quebec.
“I have an obligation to protect the habitat of species at risk and the Government of Quebec also has a responsibility. It has committed to this. And all I ask is that the Government of Quebec respect its commitment,” Minister Guilbeault stressed to the Dutywhen announcing the draft emergency decree.
Instead of the strategy expected by the federal government, the Quebec government announced last April a “consultation” on measures to better protect 3 of the 13 populations living in the territory, namely the Charlevoix, the Gaspésie and another living on the Côte-Nord. Quebec is leaving the door open to the continuation of industrial activities, including logging and mining exploration, in habitats suitable for the last caribou.
According to an international scientific study published earlier this year, industrial logging across tens of thousands of square kilometres in Quebec has seriously disrupted the habitats necessary for the species’ survival. As a result, 11 of the province’s 13 populations are now “at risk” of disappearing. The leaders of nine Innu communities have therefore urged the federal government to act to “bring the Quebec government to order” and prevent the caribou from disappearing from their territories.
More details will follow.