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Save René-Levasseur Island
Kruger Logs the Island
Context
In 1997, Kruger inc. obtains a CAAF (Contrat d'Approvisionnement et
d'Amenagement Forestier/ Forestry exploitation and managment Contract)
for the common area 093-20, with a total land area of 14 953Km2. The CAAF
is valid for 100 years. The area in question includes part of the Monts Groulx
and most of Rene-Levasseur Island. Kruger got the green light following the
two BAPE(Public Audience Board on the Environment). One was focused on the
existing protected areas and the other focused on the location of the barges
that would ferry the timber. This constitudes a very narrow assesment of the
impact the logging will have on the island's ecosystem.
Kruger Inc.
Kruger is one of the four largest pulp and paper companies in Canada. Most
of its operations are in Quebec, but it is also present in the United Stated,
Venezuela, the United Kingdom an Colombia. It's company headquarters is
located in Montreal. Kruger produces 2.2 million metric tonnes of paper each year.
Kruger's Manic Sawmill
Kruger's first acivity on the island was to set up access points for the island's
future exploitation. According to Kruger, 260 000 cubic metres of wood
will be extracted from the island's forests. The barge permits the passage
of timber trucks from one side of the island to the other, is now in operation.
The barge will operate from the end of May until mid December, which corresponds
to the ice free period, 24 hours/day, five days a week. Forest interventions are
intended for the coming fall. Approximetely 40 000 litres of Diesel fuel will be
transported on the barge every week of operation. Kruger estimates that it will
take 50 years to log the all the unprotected areas, can we call this Sustaineable
Devellopment? Will this protect the resident species? How will they cope with
constant displacement? How will populations adjust to increasing population
density? To pose these questions differently; how do human populations react
to these pressures?
Interest in the Island
Q: Why is Kruger so interested in the island despite it's difficult access?
A: Even if the island comprises only 12% of the surface area of common area 093-20, it holds over 35% of the volume in wood. This is because of the greater density of mature forests. Simple equation... more wood,lesser costs = bigger profit$
A: Logging rights are less expensive in this area(5.40$ per cubic metre) than in other areas such as Charlevoix(15.95 per cubic meter)
A: 75% of the resinous trees on the Island are Black Spruce. We all know that the Black Spruce is a forestry favourite!
A: Perhaps the simplest answer is that there are much fewer remaining forests to be logged.
Sources:
Document du Comité Forêt des AmiEs de la Terre
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