Plus Le Change

As some reptiles shed their skins so that as they grow and mature a new skin forms to take the place of the older, smaller, more constricting one, so too do politicians grow into knowledge that encourages them to shed their former beliefs and entertain new, more expansive ideas they view as beneficial to their insight into evolving societal needs.

"Quebecers, non-Quebecers, it doesn't matter.  The view is that these people are predators and they're stealing our resources.  It's extraordinary what's happening", claims Lucien Bouchard, once a federal cabinet minister in the Mulroney Conservative government, later the founder of the Bloc Quebecois in close alliance with the Parti Quebecois. 

What he is describing is a mindset of resentment by francophone Quebecers against anglophones in the tradition of exploitation by the latter of the former.  But the story has changed; francophones are now masters in their own house, and it is from among the Quebecois themselves that come those who, in the best interests of their province wish to exploit natural resources.

But, as Lucien Bouchard points out with great regret, there is a new religion in the land, a green one, a profound affection for the environment and a deep desire to do it less harm, and to leave natural resources fallow, untouched, for the betterment of the land.  "[Society] has invented a new religion", points out Mr. Bouchard.

Speaking from the annual conference of the Quebec Oil and Gas Association, an industry trade group that Mr. Bouchard himself is now a spokesman for, and leads.  He expounds on the new religion, one that views humankind as being in the process of destroying its natural surroundings.  And that responsible people should be satisfied with leaving nature to her undisturbed state.

Paradoxically, the man who led the sovereigntist movement in his day with his passionate advocating of the need for separation from Canada and his history as a federal environment minister, leading eventually to his becoming the leader of the separatist Parti Quebecois and premier of Quebec, is now impatient with the righteous environmentalism of the born-again PQ sovereigntist party.

With the fact that the newly-re-elected PQ party's natural resources minister who is responsible for the advancement or retrenchment into refusal to exploit the province's vast natural gas and oil exploration and commercialization is a former environmental crusader.  One who has campaigned for passionately against shale gas development.

Partnered with Quebec's new environment minister, another former activist who worked sturdily in the development of the province's Green Party. Fossil fuel development is a dirty concept to these two ministers, an approach nicely matched by many Quebecers.  With an estimated 155 trillion cubic feet of shale gas in the province, much of which is recoverable, the potential for economic gain is huge.

But public opposition around shale gas development is another reality.  The environmental risks of hydraulic fracturing are held to be too high, outweighing any potential benefits, according to public perception and official provincial government position under the PQ.  Mr. Bouchard argues that Quebec will have to eventually exploit those resources to crawl out from under its deficit.

He is convinced that technology exists to enable fracturing to be carried out safely, without deleterious environmental consequences, and that the technology will only steadily improve.  The current natural resources minister in the PQ government, however, is convinced that technology does not exist that would allow for the safe extraction of shale natural gas.

"The reign of deregulation, of laissez faire, has proven its limits.  And the perverse effects have been felt several times, in particular during the last economic crisis.  The regular ways of doing economic development as we've seen in Quebec and elsewhere in the world, often lead to impasses and failures that are damaging for industry and for society.  We all have to take lessons from the past."
Martine Ouellet, PQ natural resources minister