One day before the end of the parliamentary negotiations in the National Assembly, the co-speaker of Québec solidaire, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, and the MNA of Verdun, Alejandra Zaga Mendez, send a request for the adoption of an own-initiative regulation to the Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries , Energy and Natural Resources (CAPERN) to urgently think about adapting forest management to climate change.
As MPs return to their constituencies for the summer on Friday, they propose inviting the MPs sitting there at the start of the next parliamentary session.
The priority at the moment is to fight the fires and help the affected population, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois said in an interview. But as soon as possible in the fall, we need to hold a major meeting of all parties to jointly discuss climate change adaptation solutions, focusing on the forest issue.
According to him, this would be an opportunity to hear experts and make recommendations to the Minister of Natural Resources and Forests for the development of a forest management adaptation strategy.
“If the embers cool down a bit, the debate must not cool down. »
– A quote from Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, co-spokesperson for Québec Solidaire
According to the Society for the Protection of Forests from Fire (SOPFEU), Quebec is experiencing a record season with fires affecting more than 600,000 hectares.
We have to ask ourselves a question: “What are we going to do to prevent this?” asks Alejandra Zaga Mendez. How will we manage our public forests in the face of climate change?
It’s not possible that we don’t already have an adaptation plan, she adds.
Solutions “very little” applied
Solutions are known to reduce the risk of fire or to slow down the spread of fires in the forest, emphasizes Christian Messier, professor of forest ecology at the University of Quebec in Outaouais (UQO) and at the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM). .
We should diversify the planting of tree species, he concludes.
The best way really is to have more hardwoods in our forests. That’s known, he said. We know that hardwoods burn far less often and even act as a kind of buffer to reduce the risk of fire.
We should also encourage the planting of fire-adapted species, because what we want after a fire is for the forest to come back.
However, he complains, these solutions are rarely used in Quebec.
“We do very little because forestry wants certain species and we prefer so-called commercial species at this time,” explains Christian Messier. In some regions, mainly conifers are needed, so the regeneration of conifers is promoted.
Quebec promises a strategy
The Minister for Natural Resources and Forests, Maïté Blanchette Vézina, defended herself during Question Time on Tuesday for doing too little.
We are currently working on a strategy for adapting to climate change […] for managing our forests, she said. But you will understand that the priority at the moment is to put out the fires.
Minister Maïté Blanchette Vézina wants to “improve silvicultural work” so that forests are better adapted to climate change.
Photo: The Canadian Press / Jacques Boissinot
His cabinet cannot say when to expect this strategy.
The government has been telling us for about ten years that they are preparing an adjustment plan, but it has never been implemented. It really needs a strong political will, says Christian Messier.
In his view, it would be a step in the right direction if elected officials examined this issue in a parliamentary committee.
I often compare it to a smoker who knows it’s not good for your health but expects to get sick. “Maybe the wildfires we’re having this year might encourage them to keep going,” the professor colorfully concludes.