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Forum on the St.Lawrence – Previous editions
November 2015
The fifth edition of the Forum on the St. Lawrence was held in Quebec City on November 3 and 4, 2015, on the theme of “Improving Water Quality: How Can We Do More ”. At the 2015 Forum on the St. Lawrence, participants from environmental, community and recreational non-profit organizations, private-sector businesses and industries, education and research, First Nations, and the federal, provincial and municipal governments were asked to describe the impacts on St. Lawrence water quality that were causing them concern and to reflect together on actions that would help improve water quality. The 2015 Forum participants developed directions that will guide stakeholders toward implementation of consistent integrated management initiatives. The participants also developed projects and identified partnerships, and some committed to taking concrete action in their respective areas.
Read the Proceedings of the Forum on the St. Lawrence for more information.
October 2014
The fourth Forum on the St. Lawrence was held in Quebec City on October 29 and 30, 2014. The theme was adaptation to climate change. Some 100 participants were asked to describe the risks and vulnerabilities that affect or concern them regarding climate change, and to reflect together on adaptive actions that could be taken.
Read the Proceedings of the Forum 2014 for more information.
October 2013
The third Forum on the St. Lawrence was held in Quebec City on October 29 and 30, 2013, on the theme of access to the St. Lawrence. This event brought together some hundred participants who took part in workshops on issues related to accessing the St. Lawrence and identified common directions for consistent implementation of initiatives by sharing knowledge, expertise, resources and tools among stakeholders in the integrated management of the St. Lawrence. See the documentation linked to the event.
November 2012
The latest Forum on the St. Lawrence was a success! Close to one hundred stakeholders involved in integrated management of the St. Lawrence gathered in Québec City on November 6th and 7th.
The goal of the forum was to foster cooperation on the subject of areas of ecological interest. The event centred on the following four topics: identifying priority habitats to protect, protecting wetlands, protecting the landscape and environmental heritage and creating protected areas.
The different acivities and projects that were presnted over the course of this forum gave way to identifying posible common solutions and to building potential partnersips that would make it possibe to implement meaures to preserve areas of ecological interest.
With regards to identifying priority habitats to protect, discussions highlighted the need to improve recognition of regional partners' expertise and to support knowledge acquisition and dissemination.
Discussions on protecting wetlands brought attention to the importance of pooling knowledge on the subject and making this information available to decision-makers.
With respect to protecting the landscape and natural heritage, stakeholders noted that the concept of "landscape" must be clarified and that a multidisciplinary approach could be implemented by the St. Lawrence Action Plan's coordination committee to advance projects aiming to protect man-made landscapes.
As regards creating protected areas, it would be useful to prepare a document that outlines differences between the conservation status of each area. Improved cooperation between the provincial and federal governments, ZIP committees, watershed organizations and Aboriginal communities is aso necessary. These exchanges could take place within the context of the St. Lawrence Action Plan's Marine Protected Areas Monitoring Committee.
Finally, concerns regarding the Lake Saint-Pierre situation were raised during the forum. The Lake Saint-Pierre Regional Round Table (RRT) will be an effective consensus-building mechanism that will enable stakeholders to discuss issues in order to implement priority measures to improve the lake.
The Proceedings provide a detailed account of the Forum. Watch the Forum on the St. Lawrence video for a dynamic summary of the event!
March 2012
The first Forum on the St. Lawrence was held on March 27, 2012, in Quebec City at Loews Hôtel Le Concorde. Approximately 100 people attended the event, which sought to present the concept of integrated management of the St. Lawrence and allow stakeholders with water interests to meet for the first time in an environment of concertation.
The Proceedings provide a detailed account of the Forum.