Mr. Speaker, first of all I would like to thank the member for Beauport—Limoilou for the question.
I would like to repeat that Transport Canada takes this matter very seriously and, consequently, constantly monitors all information and updates about dust pollution caused by activities at the Port of Québec. It is important to remind the member for Beauport—Limoilou that the Quebec Port Authority is solely responsible for the administration, management and operation of the infrastructure under its authority.
From what we have consistently seen to date, the Quebec Port Authority continues to take this issue very seriously, is managing the situation in a responsible manner and continues to work in a spirit of co-operation. The Quebec Port Authority has committed to providing resources to reduce dust emissions resulting from transshipment operations. Furthermore, once this issue was brought to its attention, the Port of Québec worked very closely with its tenants to ensure that practical mitigation measures were implemented in order to minimize dust emissions resulting from port operations.
Some tenants of the port conducted a complete review of their operations. These reviews led to the implementation of practical mitigation measures, including the installation of sprinklers, dust detectors and washing stations and the optimization of operational procedures. These tenants also hired resources to help prevent and deal with air emissions. The Quebec Port Authority committed to monitoring the measures implemented to ensure that they were achieving the desired results and to taking into account the potential impacts on the community.
It is also important to note that the Quebec Port Authority worked closely with all levels of government: federal, provincial and municipal. More specifically, we have found that the Quebec Port Authority works regularly with Environment Canada and Quebec's ministry for sustainable development, the environment and the fight against climate change by keeping them informed on how it is working with its tenants to implement its environmental action plan.
Since Transport Canada has been monitoring the situation, we have been pleased to see that the Quebec Port Authority is taking responsible and timely action when any potential issues related to air emissions are brought to its attention. We are confident that the Quebec Port Authority will maintain this approach and spirit of co-operation when doing business. This will allow this key player in the Quebec City region to continue playing its vital role as an instrument of economic development, while addressing the issues brought to its attention that could affect the quality of life of its own community.