The Port of Quebec, under federal jurisdiction, has sampling stations that allow the level of nickel in the air to be checked.
However, the data from these stations have not been disclosed, indicates the Minister of the Environment and the Fight against Climate Change, Benoit Charrette.
There are already sampling stations on the territory of the Port of Quebec and unfortunately, for some reason that I can’t understand, they don’t want to give us access to the data from those stations.
explains the minister.
” We are asking the Port of Quebec for better cooperation. I asked my counterpart Steven Guilbault to lobby for access to this data. »
To explain the absence of this data, the Minister places the blame on an old way of thinking
from the Port of Quebec who wants it not to be under the jurisdiction of the Government of Quebec […]
The Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Steven Guilbeault (archives)
Photo: The Canadian Press/Chris Young
However, the minister does not intend to back down on the new, more permissive standard, which will allow a significantly higher rate of nickel in the air for the inhabitants of Quebec.
A 2013 report determined that the Port of Quebec was the main source of nickel in the air of Limoilou.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Carl Boivin
Opponents demand the suspension of the decree
The deputy for Jean-Lesage, Sol Zanetti, once again tried to make the government back down on Wednesday. He asked that the decree be suspended until an independent study can document the different levels of nickel in the air.
Today, a day before the fateful date, he is being asked to at least suspend the decree until a real independent study takes into account all the methodological and scientific criticisms that have taken place and are put in memories during the consultations. I ask him at least to do that
hammered the united deputy.
Sol Zanetti accuses the Legault government of not caring about the health of residents of downtown Quebec. (Archives)
Photo: Radio Canada
He accused the government of political communication.
” It’s just political communication. He makes demands that he knows he has no power to demand. He knows he won’t get them. »
A citizens’ committee slams the door
The outgoing president of the Lairet neighborhood council publicly announced that he had slammed the door of the Port Vigilance Committee, which includes the Port of Quebec, the Quebec Ministry of the Environment and citizen groups.
The outgoing president of the Lairet district council, Jean-François Vallée. (Archives)
Photo: Radio Canada
Over the years, we realized that nothing was happening in this file.
said Jean-François Vallée, alongside Sol Zanneti. We want to mention to the public that we no longer want to be instrumentalized. It’s a bit of a masquerade
.
When I hear these testimonies from people who, voluntarily, citizens go to a vigilance committee […] they go there because they think it’s important and we fool them. These are not vigilance committees, they are occupational committees of civic foolishness. It’s not acceptable. It’s serious, it can’t stay like this
adds Sol Zanetti.
The deputy indicates that he will analyze the appeals against the government if the standard is applied as planned on Thursday.
Reference-ici.radio-canada.ca