Quebec should do more to foster home-grown green technologies to fight climate change, ADQ Leader Mario Dumont says.
Dumont talked up his environmental platform during a visit to a farm in the Beauce area, where owners are installing a system to turn pig manure into energy.
The farm is an example of small-scale initiatives that contribute to greening Quebec, Dumont said.
"We'll take them by the hand, and we'll help them," he said in French, adding the province's Environment Ministry should focus on encouraging those kinds of endeavours instead of policing companies on their environmental practices.
The ministry should hire experts to help grow Quebec's green technology industry, Dumont said, but he wouldn't put a dollar figure to the proposal.
"One of the best ways to reduce the cost and make [technologies] less expensive is to enlarge the scope," he said. "When someone is developing a new technology, and he or she is left alone, the costs get higher."
An ADQ government would tap into existing economic development funds to provide financial assistance to companies developing green technologies, he said.
However, money alone won't make green technologies work, the farm owner who hosted Dumont's Wednesday visit warned.
Quebec gave the farm $200,000 to install the manure energy system, Jean-François Hince said, but it only covers about 70 per cent of its costs, and there's still the problem of excess energy it will generate.
"For sure, if the government helps us with more grants, that's going to be help for every kind of green technology right now," Hince said, adding what would really help is if Hydro-Quebec paid a premium on surplus energy, which could help subsidize the system.
| Party | Elected | Leading | Total | Vote Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LIB | 48 | 0 | 48 | 33.08% |
| ADQ | 41 | 0 | 41 | 30.80% |
| PQ | 36 | 0 | 36 | 28.32% |
| QS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.65% |
| GRN | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.89% |
| OTH | 0 | 0 | 0 | .26% |
| Last Update:March 27, 12:52:21 AM EDT | ||||
Quebec Votes 2007 Headlines »
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- Dumont will work with Quebec Premier Charest
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