Canada: Recordings of our Panel on the Mining Boom in Quebec, Outside COP15 in Montreal

BLOG ENTRY

20 December 2022, 11.37am EST

Over 130 people attended in person and remotely the conference, “A Mining Boom Sweeps Quebec: Let’s talk about the rights of local populations and the violations to biodiversity.” This event, translated simultaneously in French and English, included speakers from Long Point First Nation, the Coalition Quebec Meilleure mine, SNAP-Quebec, Eau Secours, and the Regroupement pour la protection des lacs de la Petite-Nation.

The recordings and PowerPoint Presentation are available online.

Recording in French
Recording in English
Recording without interpretation
PowerPoint Presentation

Description

115 countries in the world have a surface area smaller than what’s occupied by the 240,000 mining claims currently covering the province of Quebec. With a net increase of 40% over the last two years, the number of claims are exploding almost everywhere. Quebec is facing a real mining boom… but without the knowledge of local populations.

On the eve of the adoption of the new global framework on biodiversity at COP15, in which the preservation of life should be upheld as a fundamental societal value, the precedence of the Mining Act causes major issues for the protection of biodiversity and for the rights of local populations.

What are the causes? Which regions are targeted? Which minerals are sought? When did the mining industry take precedence? Who benefits from mining? What impacts do they create? How do mining claims affect the important efforts to expand protected areas?

To answer these questions, our panel brings together representatives from the Long Point First Nation, concerned citizens and organizations specialized in mining issues, all of whom are aware of and have been confronted with this reality for too long.

They come together to find common solutions to turn the tide against this extractive boom. Using maps and disturbing facts, this panel advances the efforts to create protected areas across the province in a way that respects the Indigenous Nations and the municipalities who live on the land.

Participants

Moderator: Rodrigue Turgeon, co-spokesperson for the Coalition Québec Meilleure mine and co-manager with MiningWatch Canada.

Panelists :

Cassandra Pichette, Director of the Natural Resources Department for Long Point First Nation
Jeremy Polson, member of Long Point First Nation
Delphine Favorel, Southern Quebec Protected Areas Manager for SNAP-Québec
Louis St-Hilaire, spokesperson for the Regroupement de Protection des lacs de la Petite-Nation
Rébecca Pétrin, Director General of Eau Secours
Émile Cloutier-Brassard, mining analyst for Eau Secours