The Effects Of The James Bay Project On Quebec

During the nineteenth century, Quebec faced a dramatic period of change in hopes of establishing its national identity which influenced the James Bay Project. The James Bay Project resulted in a change of traditional life for the Cree and Inuit communities of Northern Quebec. The environmental effects of the James Bay Project were amplified by its size, negatively impacting the land indefinitely. The James Bay Project allowed for additional investments and economic growth in Quebec’s assets, establishing a long-standing and trustful relationship between Canada and the United States. In hope of economic growth and the development of national status in Quebec, the James Bay Project established a positive nation-to-nation relationship between Canada and the United States of America.

The Cree and Inuit of Northern Quebec faced resettlement and a changed way of traditional life as a result of the James Bay Project. According to George Filotas, an Inuit Adviser, “One of the tremendous effects of the James Bay Agreement is the rapid proliferation of the bureaucracy of services and programs, the large influx of money, is that people no longer need each other.” This left the Cree divided, straying away from their culture and traditional way of life, relying heavily on funding from the Quebec government. Despite the economic benefits from the James Bay Agreement, the Cree and Inuit feared it would alter their traditional way of life consisting of hunting and fishing. The agreement outlined the protections over Cree and Inuit traditions, yet those very traditions were in jeopardy from the mercury which leached into the land from the James Bay project, contaminating the water supply and infecting the fish. The contamination of the fish, which made up a large component of their diet, required additional funding resulting in a division within the Cree and Inuit population. The large influx of money and the ‘rapid proliferation of services and programs’ resulted in a lack of funding for the health risks associated with consuming fish contaminated by mercury. Robert Bourassa heavily pushed for the James Bay Project, desperately hoping to boost the economy through means of mega hydroelectric projects. According to Matthew Coon Come, the Grand Chief of the Quebec Council of Crees, said “When the agreement was signed, we the Cree agreed to one project and one project only and now the government of Quebec wants to sell our natural resources and the environment to the United States and we are totally opposed to those future hydroelectric projects, mainly Great Whale and NBR and we never gave our consent to those projects ” In protest of Phase II of the James Bay Project, known as the Great Whale Project, the Cree gained powerful allies in New York, potentially jeopardizing their contract with Hydro-Quebec. The Cree influence eventually spread into New York, convincing New York government officials such as New York Mayor David Dinkins and New York Governor Mario Cuomo to rethink the contract with Hydro-Quebec. Robert Bourassa was furious over the Cree and Inuits peoples’ influence on New York, making discriminatory remarks in a public statement, signifying the recurring treatment of indigenous peoples in Canada.

The environmental effects of the James Bay Project were amplified by its size, negatively impacting the land forever. Hydroelectric projects hold many environmental risks during and after construction, despite its production of sustainable and pollution-free energy. The James Bay Project caught the attention of many environmental organizations due to its notable consequences on the environment, such as its impact on wildlife habitats, forests, and native ecosystems. According to Jeff Wollock, a member of the James Bay Defence Coalition in New York, said, “New Yorkers care about the environment, maybe it's because we don't have very much of it here, but they care about the environment and the rights of Native people”, demonstrating the influence the Cree and Inuit had on the project. In order to sustain the consumer economy, New York, among many other states, required vast amounts of energy, putting pressure on Hydro-Quebec to meet the demand. The demand for hydroelectric power caused fluctuations in the water flow, negatively impacting aquatic life and temperature of the water. According to Mario Cuomo, the governor of New York, “The New York Power Authority has already written to Premier Bourassa and Quebec, indicating our concerns we are very much a part of this struggle and have been for a long time”. The coalition between the Cree and Inuit and New York indicated the concern of the environmental risks regarding the construction of the James Bay Project. The Cree and Inuit communities of Northern Quebec feared that Phase II of the James Bay Project, designed solely for electricity export, would permanently disrupt fishing and migratory patterns, polluting some of their most valuable land properties. According to the journal, “Environment Issues Help Slow Down Hydro Schemes”, the flooding from the massive dams in the James Bay project “would alter the flow of 19 rivers, destroy pristine wilderness and wildlife habitat around the Great Whale River and flood the ancestral homeland of native peoples.” Unlike the United States, Canada had no laws regarding the requirement of public hearings or conducting environmental research before construction of hydroelectric projects, resulting in the accelerated development of the James Bay Project. However, the Great Whale Project’s cancellation was a result of the Cree’s influence on New York, backed by the US Government, the Cree and Inuit population, and many US environmental groups.

The James Bay Project allowed for additional investments and economic growth in Quebec’s assets, establishing a long-standing and trustful relationship between Canada and the USA. In 1989, after the completion of the James Bay Project, Quebec held a $50 billion dollar contract with New York and New England, who received 11 percent of their electricity from Hydro-Quebec. Rene Levesque referred to the James Bay Project as “the beginning of a new and independent era for Quebec” Hydro-Quebec also held many contracts with Ontario, New Brunswick, Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire, building the relationship between Quebec and the USA. As a result of their reliability, Hydro-Quebec still holds contracts with New York, New England, and Ontario, who currently make up the majority of their electricity exports. New England makes up half of Hydro-Quebec’s electricity exports, as the first contract made in 1982 signified the long-term potential of the relationship between Quebec and New England. New York has been a valuable partner of Hydro-Quebec for over 100 years, making interconnections between Quebec and New York power grids allowing for energy increased transmission in times of peak periods. The James Bay Project added to Quebec’s many assets, contributing to lower unemployment rates and the additional funding needed for social assistance.

In hopes of stimulating economic growth, the James Bay Project contributed to the development of Quebec’s national status, stimulated economic growth, and established a positive relationship between Canada and the United States of America. However, in doing so, the Cree and Inuit communities of Northern Quebec were forcibly relocated and stripped of their traditional way of life. The James Bay Project also negatively impacted the land, altering migration patterns and damaging ecosystems, its effects which are still felt today. The James Bay Project allowed for additional investments and economic growth in Quebec’s assets, establishing a long-standing and trustful relationship between Canada and the USA. The James Bay Project ultimately demonstrates that the current economic prosperity was built on the backs of the Cree and Inuit people.