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NEWSLETTER
ST. LAWRENCE VISION 2000
VOLUME 7 – ISSUE 2 – MARCH 1997
Preceding issues |
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Le Fleuve is published jointly by St. Lawrence
Vision 2000 partners.
Co-ordination
Raymonde Goupil and
Clément Dugas
Text
Communications Science-Impact
Translation from French to English
PWGSC–Translation Bureau
This Newsletter is also available in PDF
Version.
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Echoes from the Symposium
The
success of the symposium The St. Lawrence-for Life which was
organized jointly by the Association des biologistes du Québec
(ABQ) and St. Lawrence Vision 2000 (SLV 2000), and held in Québec
City from October 31 to November 2, 1996, gave the Communications
Harmonization Committee the idea to publish this special edition
of the newsletter Le Fleuve in order to report on the wide variety
of viewpoints which cropped up during discussions on the St.
Lawrence.
However,
this issue is neither a summary on the symposium’s workshops
nor an exhaustive survey carried out with the many groups and
agencies that are dedicated to improving the fluvial ecosystem.
It must be viewed, and read, more as the fruit of an open discussion
on some of the themes which aroused much interest during the
symposium. Through interviews with representatives from scientific,
environmental and industrial circles, we sought to ascertain
what they thought of the condition of the river and present
their viewpoints, which are undoubtedly shared by many of our
readers.
We deliberately shied away from interviewing program managers,
both from the federal and provincial governments, not because
their opinion didn’t carry weight, but because we really
wanted to give the various interested parties from outside the
government milieu the chance to express themselves. Several
people to whom we spoke had been able to attend The St. Lawrence—for
Life; others had not. What mattered was the interest all these
people shared in endeavours to the improve and enhance the river.
We divided the interviews into seven broad categories dealing
with the environment of the St. Lawrence River:
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Completed
projects and future avenues of pursuit |
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The
role of research and on-site clean-up projects |
| 3- |
Recovering
former uses of the river |
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Nonpoint
source of pollution of agricultural origin |
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Endeavours
and contributions by the industrial sector to improve
the ecosystem |
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Various
management approaches |
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The
feasibility of the public's increased responsibility
for the river |
Many
topics and themes were not broached, due to a lack of time and
room in this issue to discuss them. If you would like to add
your comments or relate personal testimony on these themes,
the “Letters to the Editor” column is open to all
to enrich this discussion on the river. Write us, fax us your
comments (418) 648-3859 or send us E-mail: Quebec.SLV2000@ec.gc.ca.
We would like to hear from you!
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The purpose of this newsletter is to provide
recent information on projects and activities surrounding the
implementation of the St. Lawrence Vision 2000 Action Plan.
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Recent
publications
Population
index estimate for the belugas of the St. Lawrence in
1995
Canadian Technical Report of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
#2117, by Michael C.S. Kingsley, a marine mammal researcher
at the Maurice-Lamontagne Institute of Fisheries and Oceans
Canada. Copies may be obtained by contacting the Communications
Branch of Fisheries and Oceans Canada at Québec City at
(418) 648-7747, or at Mont-Joli at (418) 775-0526.
Symposium “Le Saint-Laurent pour la vie”
(The St. Lawrence—for Life), organized jointly by
the Association des biologistes du Québec and St.
Lawrence Vision 2000
A summary of the round table discussions on intervention
programs in the St. Lawrence and the plenary session on
future avenues for action. Copies may be obtained, in
French only, from the Coordination Office of St. Lawrence
Vision 2000 by calling (418) 648-3444.
Industrial plants: highlights
A new series of 56 fact sheets on industrial plants was
added to the list of priority plants at the launching
of the St. Lawrence Vision 2000, in 1994. These 56 fact
sheets are in addition to those previously published on
the 50 priority plants targetted by the St. Lawrence Action
Plan (SLAP) in 1988.
Also available is a new fact sheet called “The virtual
elimination of toxic, persistent and bioaccumulative substances,
a reality with St. Lawrence Vision 2000”.
These documents, produced by the Protection Component
of St. Lawrence Vision 2000, may be obtained by calling
(514) 496-7319.
Qualité des eaux de la rivière Maskinongé
et du Loup, 1979-1996
Patricia Robitaille, biologist, M.Sc., ministère de l’Environnement
et de la Faune du Québec, February 1997, Catalogue No.
97-3568-01.
This French-language brochure presents the findings of
a study on the quality of the Maskinongé and du Loup River
basins, carried out with the use of data gathered between
1979 and 1996.
You may obtain a copy of the brochure from the Information
Desk at the ministère de l’Environement et de la
Faune du Québec, 150, boul. René-Lévesque Est, Ground
Floor, Québec City (Quebec) G1K 4Y1, Tel: (418) 643-3127
or toll-free at 1-800-561-1616.
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From
May 12 to 15, 1997
“Health Conference 1997 – Great Lakes/
St. Lawrence”. This international scientific conference,
grouping some 450 researchers in the public health field,
will deal with the effects of the environment on human
health in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River basins.
It will be held on next May 12, 13, 14 and 15 at the Sheraton
Centre in Montreal. Health Canada, the ministère de la
Santé et des Services sociaux du Québec, and the Agency
for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (United States)
are the organizers for this first scientific conference
to be entirely devoted to the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence
River basins. You may obtain more information and a copy
of the program by contacting the secretariat of the conference
at (514) 287-1070.
May
16 and 17, 1997
“Baie des Chaleurs: la mer qu’on doit penser”.
Public consultation on the Baie des Chaleurs, organized
by the Baie des Chaleurs ZIP Committee. For information:
Michel Chouinard and Éric Giguère, at (418) 759-5880.
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