The Minister of the Environment says he is “reassured” by the report on air quality in Limoilou, but cannot guarantee the citizens of the district that there will be no more exceedances of the nickel standard.
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“There are no, no regulations that prevent overruns at times. The important thing is to correct this situation when it arises and to ensure that the elements which discourage non-compliance with the rules are strong enough to discourage the people who would be responsible”, mentioned the Minister of the Environment. , Benoit Charette.
New threshold
The Minister reacted to the tabling the day before of the voluminous report of the Working Group on atmospheric contaminants in Limoilou, chaired by Jean-Pierre Charland.
The report identified nickel as one of the main air contaminants in Limoilou and made several recommendations to the Port, where nickel is handled. By using the new nickel standard threshold, which was quintupled by the CAQ government, the Group found that there were dozens of exceedances of the standard.
Although he admits that the findings of the report are “worrying”, Mr. Charette says he is “reassured” and “optimistic” for the future since “the three entities concerned are now working together. This was not the case a few years ago”. In addition, he notes, the air quality situation has improved over the past few years.
Sanctions
Exceeding the standards is an “unacceptable” situation, qualified the Liberal Party, in question period, asking for action. The Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, replied that he wanted public health to speak out.
“You have to have the opinion of public health. We will ask public health to take a very clear position.”
Despite these overruns, no sanction has been imposed, acknowledged Minister Charette, who is asking for time. Bill 102 passed last spring strengthened the penalty regime, he argued. “Let’s give it time to settle in.”
In addition, he pointed out, sampling stations have been added and will provide a better picture. In the coming weeks, the analyzes of the last few months will be unveiled.
The minister responsible for the Capitale-Nationale, Jonatan Julien, referred the questions to his colleague from the Environment.