During the meeting of the Maritime Transport Consultation Forum (Forum de concertation sur le transport maritime ) on January 19, 2022, a subcommittee on the decarbonization of the maritime industry (Committee) was created.
This Forum is a consultation body that brings together the maritime industry of Quebec and the provincial government. It is co-chaired by the Ministry of Transportation and Sustainable Mobility, and Deputy Premier of Quebec, and the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Sodes.
The Committee’s mandate was to “support and assist the government in developing tools to help the Quebec maritime industry achieve the decarbonization targets set for the sector.”
Specifically, as part of its work, the Committee was tasked with:
To achieve this, through the Sodes, a mandate was given to the consortium formed by PESCA Environnement, Dunsky, and KPMG.
Here is the complete set of documents produced as part of the Committee’s work:
SODES is actively involved in the Canadian Marine Advisory Council (CMAC), which represents parties interested in shipping, navigation and marine pollution. CMAC advises the government on maritime safety and security issues and opportunities, publishing reports based on its findings annually.
Six regional CMAC meetings are held: Pacific, Ontario, Québec, Atlantic–Maritimes, Atlantic–Newfoundland and Labrador, Prairie and Northern. National CMAC meetings are held in Ottawa and comprise national standing committees and working groups, in which SODES plays an active role.
The six regional CMAC meetings are : Atlantic—Maritimes, Atlantic—Newfoundland and Labrador, Québec, Ontario, Prairie and Northern, Pacific
Green Marine’s St. Lawrence Advisory Committee seeks to give feedback and strategic advice to improve the Green Marine environmental certification program and develop new environmental performance indicators. Composed of experts and stakeholders from the maritime industry, the Committee focuses on developing best practices and implementing innovative solutions to reduce maritime activities’ environmental impact on the St. Lawrence.
The Navigation Coordination Committee (NCC) was created under the St. Lawrence Action Plan, born of a Canada-Québec partnership. Composed of 25 members from the maritime industry, recreational boating sector, environmental groups and provincial/federal government departments, the NCC plays a crucial role in sustainable management of the St. Lawrence.
SODES participates actively in the NCC and its various working groups, including:
The NCC’s work culminated in publication of the Sustainable Navigation Strategy for the St. Lawrence in 2004, with a second edition in 2015. This strategy aims to adapt commercial shipping and recreational boating management practices to sustainability imperatives, focusing on three main areas: reducing environmental impacts, promoting the economic viability of maritime transport and social harmonizing of uses.
Reporting to the Navigation Coordination Committee (NCC), the North Atlantic right whale working group, composed of members representing maritime transport, governments, the research community and environmental organizations, has devised a crucial solution to reduce right whale mortality due to ship strikes. The group’s efforts led to the introduction of speed reduction measures for vessels over 20 meters long in the Gulf of St. Lawrence in summer 2017.
Marie-France Daoust is Director of Corporate Affairs at the St.Lawrence Economic Development Council. With more than 15 years’ experience in entrepreneurship, 10 years in strategic management within the Quebec government and 5 years in public and government affairs, she stands out for her leadership and ability to bring people together. In her role, she is responsible for developing business growth strategy, forging strategic partnerships, and mobilizing maritime organizations around today’s major issues.
