At the dawning of 2025, let’s take a look back at an exceptional year for the CQDE. Thanks to your unwavering support and donations, we’ve made major advances in environmental justice. Here are the highlights of our year:

Northvolt has been a major source of motivation for our team this year, and for good reason, since it touches on issues of transparency, public participation, and the protection of biodiversity and the environment. Our watchdog role paid off, as it served to alert and mobilize decision-makers, the media, and public opinion regarding the risks of bypassing our environmental processes, and the importance of respecting the rule of law and democratic processes.

In collaboration with Ecojustice, we represented the Mitchikanibikok Inik community in a challenge to the Mining Act. The Québec Superior Court ruled that the provincial government had for decades failed in its duty to consult the community before issuing mining claims for exploration in its territory.

This ruling marks a turning point, requiring the community to be consulted and accommodated before any new claims are made.

Access to information is essential for informed civic engagement. This year, we won two major cases:

• Horne Smelter: Citizen wins case for access to crucial input data.
• Protecting Fairview Forest: A citizen has managed to negotiate the removal of some of the redaction on documents related to a controversial commercial and residential development project.

Greenwashing is a growing practice that affects our entire society. We’ve taken many and varied actions in an attempt to curb the phenomenon:

• Federal policy: Our recommendations have played an active role in the adoption of stricter rules governing corporate environmental declarations.
• General public: We have supported the public with a webinar and a practical guide designed to make it easier to report cases of greenwashing. These initiatives have already borne fruit, with a number of private citizens and groups informing us of the filing of greenwashing complaints. 

Financial sector: We published a research report on financial greenwashing, including 26 recommendations to improve the credibility and transparency of environmental declarations in this sector.

Our parliamentary committee interventions have contributed to

• Strengthening conservation of natural environments through amendments to Bill 39 that facilitate municipal action.
• Enabling the public to find out how much water is used by companies: a victory achieved in partnership with Eau Secours.

Supporting the decarbonization of buildings through our recommendations concerning Bill 41.

272 members

160,000 visits to the website

4 participations in public consultations and submission of briefs

5 legal responses

+11,000 supporters across Québec

7 students trained through the Legal Clinic and the internship program of the Barreau du Québec (Québec Bar) 

436 requests for legal information answered on the Green Line

15 new Obiterre articles

 

To find out more about these achievements and much more, read our annual report.

These achievements are also yours. Together, let’s continue to build a sustainable future through environmental law.

Many thanks to our partners for their essential collaboration throughout this exceptional year.