Indigenous groups send eviction notice to Quebec forestry companies

MONTREAL — Two Indigenous organizations have issued eviction notices to a number of Quebec forestry companies in the province’s Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Mauricie and Côte-Nord regions.

The Mamo alliance and the Association des Gardiens du territoire Nehirowisiw Aski sent the notices to 11 companies.

The notices ordered the companies to immediately remove their workers and equipment from unceded Indigenous territory.

The letters are a response to the Quebec government’s proposed forestry reform, which has drawn opposition from environmentalists and First Nations.

The reform would include creating so-called “priority forest management zones” set aside for the logging industry.

The organizations say Bill 97 threatens ancestral rights and was tabled without Indigenous consent.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 20, 2025.

Stéphane Blais, The Canadian Press