Rampant old-growth logging in Quebec is pushing caribou to extinction. [1] In just a few decades, the Val d’Or (or “Golden Valley” in English) caribou population sharply dropped from 50 to 9 in number. In response, the Anishinabe First Nation of Lac Simon in western Quebec has a plan to protect the caribou and their habitat. [2]
Instead of listening to them, Quebec Forest Minister Pierre Dufour is plowing ahead with ongoing destruction and logging permits. [3] The same ministry threatened to let the herd die off in 2018. [4]
In their conservation plan and proposed solutions, Lac Simon First Nation are asking for a moratorium on logging in caribou habitat to give the Val d’Or caribou a fighting chance at survival. [5] By ignoring the community’s wishes, Minister Dufour is failing in his duty to respect Indigenous rights and to protect biodiversity. [6]
Tell Minister Dufour to stop logging the last good critical caribou habitat and start listening to Lac Simon First Nation!
Sources:
[1] Quebec Ignores Caribou Herds on Verge of Extinction
[2] Val-d’Or’s boreal woodland caribou are on the verge of extinction, but a new report outlines how they can be saved
[3] The Council of Lac Simon Nation 2022-02-15 letter to Minister Dufour "Rétablissement de la population de caribou de Val-d’Or et de son habitat” calls out logging permits in essential habitat and plans to up logging by 300%. Map: https://arcg.is/10SyOW
[4] Quebec government to let threatened woodland caribou herd die off; First Nations demand caribou protection as feds and Quebec argue over jurisdiction
[5] Brief: For the protection and restoration of the Val-d'Or caribou population and its habitat brief, Conseil de la nation Anishinabe du Lac Simon
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