Protect Quebec’s Rupert River
Join Cree people in taking action to protect Quebec’s Rupert River!
Wildcanada.net Action Alert
Thursday, August 26, 2004
Freddy Jolly, leading a group of Cree people, completed his campaigning walk of 456km to raise awareness and to mobilize support to protect the last untouched river accessible by road in James Bay - the mighty Rupert River. Mr. Jolly, his fellow walkers and supporters, seek to liberate the Rupert River from large scale dam projects planned by Hydro-Quebec and its private partners. Last year Wildcanada.net and Earthwild International selected the Rupert and Eastmain Rivers as Canada’s 2nd most endangered rivers.
Take action now at http://www.endangeredrivers.net/eastmain and join the Cree people in the fight to protect the Rupert and Eastmain rivers from devastating hydroelectric developments.
According to Freddy Jolly, the Rupert River has nourished, transported and charmed generations of Cree, as well as thousands of North Americans. Both the Rupert and the Eastmain flow through the traditional homelands of the Cree people, and are within a remote, nearly pristine landscape filled with thousands of lakes, and numerous impressive rivers. The area boasts a rich cultural history with many of the traditional pathways of Canada’s first fur traders still intact and in use. They are two of the largest rivers in the James Bay area of northern Quebec and support dozens of species such as walleye, yellow sturgeon, great northern pike, bald eagle, osprey, bear, moose, and woodland caribou.
With great pressure for continued expansion of hydropower generation in this region, we must act now. The Eastmain-1-A project includes diversion of the Rupert River into the Eastmain watershed, and calls for the construction of four dams, 51 dykes, two diversion bays flooding an area of 395 km2, 12,000 metres of diversion canals or tunnels, and two permanent access roads. Much of the resulting energy will be sold to the United States.
The effects of damming will be long-lasting and widespread. Developments such as this alter, and sometimes reverse, the flow of water, destroying local ecosystems, removing habitat and food for plant and animal populations and affecting areas and populations far downstream.
Furthermore, studies completed by Quebec Hydro have linked hydroelectric development in northern Quebec to increased levels of mercury in nearby ecosystems. This not only poses a problem to fish, plant and wildlife populations, but to the local Cree people for whom both fish and waterfowl are traditional foods.
Hydropower companies have worked hard to create public relations campaigns that position large scale damming as a clean, green energy source, but such mega dam constructions are far from that.
Freddy Jolly has offered his legs and his voice to reiterate the necessity for sustainable energy development. Energy conservation and renewable energy projects are a more appropriate means of meeting today’s energy demands. Those who walked with Freddy could not help but notice the potential for wind power throughout the James Bay region.
Take action to support renewable, sustainable energy projects and oppose mega dam developments on the Rupert and Eastmain rivers. Visit http://www.endangeredrivers.net/eastmain now to send a letter to the Minister of Environment and Minister of Natural Resources of Quebec.
For more information on Freddy Jolly’s walk please contact rupertwalk@yahoo.ca.
Wildcanada.net Action Alert
Thursday, August 26, 2004
Freddy Jolly, leading a group of Cree people, completed his campaigning walk of 456km to raise awareness and to mobilize support to protect the last untouched river accessible by road in James Bay - the mighty Rupert River. Mr. Jolly, his fellow walkers and supporters, seek to liberate the Rupert River from large scale dam projects planned by Hydro-Quebec and its private partners. Last year Wildcanada.net and Earthwild International selected the Rupert and Eastmain Rivers as Canada’s 2nd most endangered rivers.
Take action now at http://www.endangeredrivers.net/eastmain and join the Cree people in the fight to protect the Rupert and Eastmain rivers from devastating hydroelectric developments.
According to Freddy Jolly, the Rupert River has nourished, transported and charmed generations of Cree, as well as thousands of North Americans. Both the Rupert and the Eastmain flow through the traditional homelands of the Cree people, and are within a remote, nearly pristine landscape filled with thousands of lakes, and numerous impressive rivers. The area boasts a rich cultural history with many of the traditional pathways of Canada’s first fur traders still intact and in use. They are two of the largest rivers in the James Bay area of northern Quebec and support dozens of species such as walleye, yellow sturgeon, great northern pike, bald eagle, osprey, bear, moose, and woodland caribou.
With great pressure for continued expansion of hydropower generation in this region, we must act now. The Eastmain-1-A project includes diversion of the Rupert River into the Eastmain watershed, and calls for the construction of four dams, 51 dykes, two diversion bays flooding an area of 395 km2, 12,000 metres of diversion canals or tunnels, and two permanent access roads. Much of the resulting energy will be sold to the United States.
The effects of damming will be long-lasting and widespread. Developments such as this alter, and sometimes reverse, the flow of water, destroying local ecosystems, removing habitat and food for plant and animal populations and affecting areas and populations far downstream.
Furthermore, studies completed by Quebec Hydro have linked hydroelectric development in northern Quebec to increased levels of mercury in nearby ecosystems. This not only poses a problem to fish, plant and wildlife populations, but to the local Cree people for whom both fish and waterfowl are traditional foods.
Hydropower companies have worked hard to create public relations campaigns that position large scale damming as a clean, green energy source, but such mega dam constructions are far from that.
Freddy Jolly has offered his legs and his voice to reiterate the necessity for sustainable energy development. Energy conservation and renewable energy projects are a more appropriate means of meeting today’s energy demands. Those who walked with Freddy could not help but notice the potential for wind power throughout the James Bay region.
Take action to support renewable, sustainable energy projects and oppose mega dam developments on the Rupert and Eastmain rivers. Visit http://www.endangeredrivers.net/eastmain now to send a letter to the Minister of Environment and Minister of Natural Resources of Quebec.
For more information on Freddy Jolly’s walk please contact rupertwalk@yahoo.ca.
Starmail - 28. Aug, 00:53
