Its policies simply aren’t working.  Overall waste generated has nearly doubled in the past 10 years, with waste going to landfill rising by over 10% in the same period.

One of its key targets was to get 60% of the province’s waste food into composting by 2012 has had to be abandoned: the current figure is only 12% and the target just cannot be met.

However, rather than just trying to fiddle with green taxes, the government has gone straight for the jugular and announced plans to make it illegal to dump rubbish and food waste.

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When dermatologist June Irwin first stood up in 1985 to speak at a Hudson, Quebec, town council meeting about the potential link between synthetic lawn pesticide and herbicide use and human and animal illnesses, she was written off as a flake. Irwin persisted, though, attending “every single town meeting in Hudson for six consecutive years - each time reading aloud a different letter with new observations and facts.” Eventually, she got her message across, and Hudson (population 5000) became the first town in North America to ban the use of these chemicals.

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What makes a protest worthwhile? Does it have to change policy, or achieve the reversal of a specific decision? Recent protests in the environmental arena seem to have educative as well as practical purposes. 

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After 14 months of construction, the Westbury, Quebec, factory was “mechanically completed” in December, but it isn’t yet fully operational. The company is now working to get the gas part of the plant – the part that will convert the poles into what’s called “syngas,” a mixture that includes carbon monoxide and hydrogen, and will use it to make methanol — up and running now and expects it to be running constantly by early February, CEO Vincent Chornet says.

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In a 390-25 vote, the House approved a measure on Tuesday that will increase protection of the Great Lakes region. It will prohibit any new diversions of the water to other places, and require states that border the lakes to adhere to new conservation standards.

Together, the five Great Lakes account for 20 percent of the world’s supply of fresh surface water.

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As part of electricity restructuring efforts in the last few years, 25 states have adopted a Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS). This new policy promotes renewable energy sources that are consistent and compatible with competitive electricity markets and if efficiently implemented can develop 3,800 MW of new renewable energy capacity and maintain another 3,600 MW of existing capacity that might otherwise go off line. The RPS obliges retailers to include in their portfolios energy from renewable sources such as wind and solar. Such a move makes economic sense as the Energy Information Administration showed that by 2020 the nation’s energy bill can be lowered by $15 billion per year with only a 10% renewable-based energy supply compared to a heavily fossil-based supply mix.

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Quebec, like the rest of Canada and the U.S., has long required raw-milk cheeses to be aged 60 days before sale to ensure against the possibility of harmful bacteria in unpasteurized milk. Artisan cheese makers have argued that many raw-milk cheeses reach their peak flavor at three to four weeks and the longer aging requirements change the inherent characteristics of those young cheeses. The North American versions of brie, camembert and other soft cheeses are very different from what is commonly produced in France, where a cheese cannot be labeled ‘Camembert de Normandie’ unless it is made according to strict rules.

The change in Quebec’s law is accompanied by new regulations controlling sanitation and handling of the raw milk and raw milk cheeses.

Let’s hope this incident of uncharacteristic government sanity crosses the border into the rest of Canada and the U.S. I’ve tasted young raw-milk cheeses given to me (because they can’t sell them to me) by some of my local dairy farmers, and the difference is amazing. I wish my government would stop protecting me from risks I’m willing to take.  But until they do, I may have to consider a quick smuggling trip across the border to Montreal.

Related stories about food policy and milk:

• Put Down That Glass of Organic Milk and Forget About Sipping Soy Milk! USDA Labeling Challenged by the Organic Consumers Association

Image credit: Marc Roussel under a Creative Commons license.

The Quebec-owned utility, Hydro-Quebec, will be the producer and distributor of the hydropower. The utility is the fourth-largest power producer in the world, generating and distributing most of the province’s electricity as well as exporting it to the Northeastern U.S. States.

The massive undertaking is being billed as energy security for Quebec and an important economic development project. Indeed, it is expected to take around 4,000 people to build the dams. But is it really “green” power?

Some Indian communities like the Cree and Inuit oppose the dam, and have fought the province before on hydro projects on their lands. The anticipated jobs and economic development are attractive to many in this poor, remote location. But the dams will also have massive environmental impact on their lands, including possible flooding of hunting areas and sacred burial sites.

It’s no wonder they are wary; the Cree in Manitoba have been fighting the provincially owned Manitoba Hydro for years seeking reparations for the destruction of their lands and culture due to large hydropower dams. When the Manitoba Hydro project began in the 1970s, the Cree were made promises of economic development and prosperity that have no where near been realized. The hydropower is even being billed as “green” power in some places in the Upper Midwest where it is sold, despite the environmental devastation it’s caused. The Hydro-Quebec project has also been deemed “green” by the Quebec Environment Minister Claude Bechard.

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