Jocelyne Girard-Bujold

[Irving Whale, March 5th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, a recent report to the Minister of the Environment on restoration of the site where the Irving Whale went down proposes various ways of dealing with the problem of the PCB contaminated sediments left behind after the barge was refloated in 1996.

Can the Minister of the Environment tell us whether her government is going to remove the contaminated sediment from the Irving Whale site and bill the Irving company?

[World Puppetry Week, March 3rd, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, the organizers of world puppetry week at Jonquière have been awarded a prestigious prize, le prix Rideau, in the initiative category, by the independent network of special event organizers.

This award goes to the organizers of an original event that has attracted and developed a new audience.

As well, two particular productions within the 1998 festival also attracted the attention of the provincial jury at the Soirée des masques, Les enrobantes , presented by Populus Mordicus, and the Théâtre de l'Oeil's Le Porteur .

The world puppetry festival was a great success for the city of Jonquière and the region of Saguenay-Lac Saint-Jean. My congratulations to the organizers, and wishes for continuing success for many years to come.

In conclusion, I extend an invitation to everyone to attend the next edition of the festival, which will be held at Jonquière in the year 2000.

[The Environment, February 19th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, given that the federal budget provides no significant injection of funds to achieve the objectives of the Kyoto summit, we can legitimately question the government's intentions in this regard.

How can the Minister of the Environment achieve the Kyoto objectives with $150 million, when the United States will be spending billions of dollars?

[Pyrocycling Of Bark, February 16th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to call the House's attention to the opening of a pilot plant in Jonquière using a new industrial process called Pyrocycling to recycle bark.

This is a very promising initiative, both for the jobs it creates and for the use it makes of the large quantities of waste bark available in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region.

This new industrial process will use heat to decompose bark into oils, charcoal, gas and water. The oils will be used in the particle board and plywood industry, while the charcoal will serve as a raw material in the metallurgical and mineral industry.

But that is not all. The plant will also demonstrate a new concept for producing electricity that will enhance Quebec's role in the renewable energy sector.

We wish these innovative folks good luck and every success in the future.

[Criminal Code, February 11th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, my question was as follows:

For the second time since 1996, the auditor general concludes in a report that the federal government still does not have a complete picture of the various environmental hazards posed by the 5,000 contaminated federal sites.

It is a very important issue. The environmental liabilities related to contaminated sites exceed $2 billion, excluding radioactive waste management costs. The government must take action now.

These pollutants come from government laboratories, military bases, harbours and ports, airports, training facilities and reserve lands. The diversity and number of contaminated federal sites—more than 5,000—show the scope and severity of the problem.

These sites contain PCBs, hydrocarbons, mine tailings, heavy metals, other waste materials and chemicals. The presence of numerous toxic substances reminds us of the urgent need to take action. We must avoid spreading contaminants that could be harmful to our health and our environment, which would mean additional costs.

In his 1996, 1997 and December 1998 reports, the auditor general reiterates that it is an important problem to which the government seems totally oblivious.

In this context, I would like to know what the Minister of the Environment has to say on this issue. When will she be able to convince her cabinet colleagues that this is a priority and that the government must act as soon as possible, provide us with a complete list of environmental hazards, adopt an environmental policy and announce that it is providing the responsible departments with the necessary resources to address the problem of contaminated sites?

[Criminal Code, February 11th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, on December 4, I asked a question in this House but did not get an answer—

[Supply, February 11th, 1999]

The Minister of Human Resources Development has been going on and on about this for weeks.

I would like my colleague to come up with some concrete facts and examples that will lead to elimination of poverty by around the year 2000 in Canada.

[Supply, February 11th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I would have greatly appreciated having the hon. member for St. Paul's provide us with some examples and solutions for eradicating the situation we have in Canada at the present time of 1.6 million children living in poverty. We are not talking of figures here, we are talking about children. They are our future. We should stop talking about this and that. We are told what Mr. Chrétien—

[Agriculture, February 11th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to congratulate the agricultural producers of Quebec for their efforts, under the leadership of the Laval University economics and agricultural policies research group, are drawing up a portrait of the agro-environmental situation on Quebec farms. This has been under way since 1997, and the assessment of Quebec's 25,000 farms will soon be completed.

This agro-environmental report on farming is a broad survey of agricultural practices and their impacts on soil and water. The data address some 100 different aspects. The data banks can be cross-referenced to numbered maps to give information by MRC, by watershed area or by crop.

The purpose of this one-of-a-kind undertaking is to provide farmers and government with guidance for improving the impact of agriculture on the environment.

Let us congratulate the farmers for protecting their environment, for it is one we all share.

[Supply, February 9th, 1999]

Madam Speaker, I think the hon. member of the New Democratic Party is right to say that the federal government was all talk in the past. It has been all talk and no action with respect to the export of drinking water. Nothing has been done to protect the quality of our water, this vital resource for humanity.

That is what I am so uneasy about in the NDP motion before the House today. After all is said and done, this government has indeed done nothing. Some provinces, like British Columbia, passed legislation on water exports. Others have seen to it that anything having to do with their freshwater or drinking water requires legislation to be passed; this way they are in control. This motion would be putting in this government's hands Canada's sovereign right to protect, preserve and conserve our freshwater resources for future generations.

I am sorry but I think that what this motion is saying right now is “You the provinces have done what you had to do; now that the bandwagon is on the move, let the Canadian government jump on and take over everything you have done”.

I do hope that is not the intent, but that is how I interpret it.