Green Coalition wants meeting
with Environment Minister

The survival of the Technoparc wetland ecosystem is at stake

Montréal, August 10, 2023

On August 8, 2023, Green Coalition wrote an important letter to Quebec’s Environment Minister Benoit Charette, requesting a special meeting between the Minister and the Green Coalition to discuss “the survival of the Technoparc wetland ecosystem.”

The letter spoke directly to M. Charette: “We believe that you, as Environment Minister, are in a unique position to find a resolution to what has become a very serious environmental problem. Your good sense and courageous action in the case of Hudson’s Sandy Beach has reinforced that belief.”

Included in the proposal for the meeting was a delegation of participants from the Green Coalition that included a former Environment Minister, the Honourable Clifford Lincoln. Katherine Collin, of Technoparc Oiseaux, would also attend the meeting.

The Coalition’s letter identifies the looming threat: “A local company called Hypertec has announced that it wants to build a global headquarters in the heart of the ecosystem. Such a step can only lead to the fragmentation and ultimate destruction of the wetland ecosystem, Montreal’s last large, unprotected natural space, 215 hectares of rare wildlife habitats the size of Mount Royal Park.”

And the appeal seeks action from the Quebec government, steps that Quebec can take to deal with the ecological crisis: “This Technoparc wetland controversy is surging. Citizens are learning that Canada has already lost 90% of its urban wetlands, and so has Montreal. And they are also learning that Montreal is the least well-endowed among Canadian and North American cities for conserved natural lands and that our Metropolis desperately needs to redress this shortfall.”

“Citizens are insisting,” writes the Coalition, “that this biodiverse Technoparc ecosystem, where bird and animal species are under pressure from habitat loss, must not be subjected to any encroachment by Hypertec.” They know how irreplaceably valuable the Technoparc wetland ecosystem is and how important its survival is during this new period of radical climate change.

In its conclusion, the request for dialogue and action speaks directly to the Minister, saying that the Green Coalition is “confident that you will find a way to resolve the Technoparc crisis and that this natural space, which is so important to so many Montrealers and Quebecers, will be saved. We are counting on you and we look forward to meeting with you.”

Green Coalition now awaits Minister Charette’s response.

For more information:
Patrick Barnard: pbarnard@videotron.ca • 514 463-0573
David Fletcher: fletcherdavid@me.com • 438 526-7684

Feature image: Technoparc pond, by Ilana Block

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The Green Coalition – representing more than 80 citizens groups dedicated to the protection and restoration of the Environment. Founded in 1988.