Kruger has lost its rights to log on Rene-Lvasseur island. A ruling issued on June 17th said the Quebec government…
Kruger has lost its rights to log on Rene-Lvasseur island. A ruling issued on June 17th said the Quebec government violated its constitutional duty by granting the company the right to log on the island prior to consulting the Innu, who have long considered the area to be sacred.
A Safeguard Order was granted to the Betsiamites Innu by the Quebec Superior Court who declared, “the attorney-general of Quebec violated his constitutional obligation to consult the Betsiamites Innu beforehand and to accommodate them with regard to their ancestral rights and their Indian title claims prior to granting Kruger any other form of harvesting authorization”
The ruling will cost Kruger a loss of 38% in wood supplies and will directly affect the operations at its three North Shore sawmills, Scierie Manic in Rageuneau, Scierie HCN in Forestville and the Longue-Rive dressing and drying mill.
A hearing will be held in December, at which point the Innu will seek to upgrade their granted temporary injunction to permanent injunction.
Kruger is in the process of reviewing its options. “We want to do everything in our power to ensure that our rights are respected and to protect Kruger employees’ jobs and the significant investments our company has made in recent years,” said vice president of corporate affairs Jean Majeu.
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