Montréal, February 28, 2025 – The Centre québécois du droit de l’environnement (CQDE) is extremely concerned about Bill 93, An Act respecting, in particular, the transfer of ownership of an immovable of Ville de Blainville, tabled this past week at the National Assembly. The organization is calling for the bill to be withdrawn and supports the repeated requests for a mandate to be granted to the Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement (BAPE) concerning the problem of hazardous materials management. 

The CQDE is alarmed by the potential democratic and environmental consequences of this bill. Adopting special legislation to bypass the will of municipalities and allow the destruction of a natural environment of high ecological value is a draconian method that runs counter to democratic principles and Québec’s commitments to protecting biodiversity and the environment. This approach shows a lack of consideration for public opinion and municipal autonomy. The proposed legislation also allows the government to set aside some of its own environmental standards, in addition to thumbing its nose at any notion of municipal autonomy, the recognition of which was put forward at the same time in Bill 81.

“The environment continues to be the victim of short-sighted political and economic decisions. When we sacrifice the environment, we sacrifice our quality of life, our health, and our very future. In the midst of a climate and biodiversity crisis, this is extremely irresponsible,” asserts Geneviève Paul, Executive Director of the CQDE, in decrying the bill.

Moreover, Bill 93 excludes most possibilities of recourse with regards to challenging the powers it grants the government and makes it impossible to sue Stablex before April 15, 2025, if the company obtains authorization to go ahead with its project, except in cases of intentional or gross negligence. By that date, the destruction caused by any preliminary work will be irremediable. The CQDE is deeply troubled by these legislative provisions, which remove the possibility for the courts to verify the legality of the decisions that the government will make under the proposed legislation and of the actions that will be taken by Stablex.

With this legislative manoeuvre, the government is ignoring BAPE recommendations and public concerns. It is choosing to destroy a natural environment that the municipality of Blainville, supported by the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal (CMM), is trying to safeguard, thus weakening the environmental protection role of the latter jurisdictional body. It gives Stablex permission to disregard municipal standards for environmental protection, including the CMM’s recently adopted interim control bylaw.

“What’s the point of initiating democratic processes, consulting the BAPE, rallying municipalities, and adopting regulations if the government bypasses its own laws when the responses elicited by the legislation are not to its liking?” concludes Geneviève Paul.

For all these reasons, the CQDE insists that Bill 93 be withdrawn and that the issue of hazardous materials management in Québec be analyzed promptly by the BAPE.

-30 –