Dr. Langlois, I'd like to come back to my last comment about the St. Lawrence River. You know as well as I do that the fresh water of the St. Lawrence is an important source of drinking water for our riverside residents and for all of Quebec. At the Saguenay, fresh water meets salt water, and there is so much activity there that the water in the St. Lawrence contains a significant amount of food for marine mammals, which come there in large numbers.
In 2014, the supertanker Minerva Gloria went through the St. Lawrence Seaway. At the time, we were told that it could only be filled two‑thirds with oil from the oil sands because the ship might otherwise rake the bottom of the river.
Since then, huge oil tankers have been allowed to sail on the St. Lawrence, and their width has increased from 32 metres or 34 metres to 44 metres.
Dr. Langlois, is the St. Lawrence River in danger?