“There is erosion of the banks in the Bas-Saint-Laurent, in Gaspésie, in Côte-Nord. I don't think we're going to start seeing a program for each region."
Author of the article:
La Presse Canadienne
Patrice Bergeron
ÎLES-DE-LA-MADELEINE — CAQ Leader François Legault refuses to guarantee the Îles-de-la-Madeleine a specific share of the $100 million promised against shoreline erosion, even though the archipelago has just been violently hit by post-tropical storm Fiona.
However, “it is here that it is most urgent to act,” Legault said in a news conference on Monday.
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Storm Fiona hit the area last weekend with winds of more than 120 kph.
“There is a greater frequency and greater intensity of this kind of impact,” he said of the islands, which are particularly exposed to the adverse effects of climate change.
However, Legault does not want to ensure a dedicated amount for the banks of the islands.
“There is erosion of the banks in the Bas-Saint-Laurent, in Gaspésie, in Côte-Nord. I don’t think we’re going to start seeing a program for each region.”
He was alongside his candidate Jonathan Lapierre, the current mayor of Îles-de-la-Madeleine, who has already deplored the insufficient funds allocated to climate adaptation, but who now says he is satisfied with the sums promised.
The $100 million for all of Quebec would be added to an already existing amount of $70 million.
“If it is necessary to add more, we will add more,” Legault said.
An inventory of the work is to be carried out to counter the erosion of the banks, he said.
Legault took a break from his election campaign on Monday to go as premier to see the damage caused by storm Fiona in Îles-de-la-Madeleine, where he also met with acting mayor Gaétan Richard.
PQ MP Joël Arseneau won the riding by only 15 votes in 2018 against the Liberals.
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