Erik Richer La Flèche … believes successful implementation of Plan Nord has
the potential to transform Quebec into a “mini-Australia, that is, a preferred,
stable supplier to some of the largest economies in the world.”
What can Quebec learn from Alberta’s experience, and what might it mean for this province’s future?
May 2012 marks the one-year anniversary of the launch of Quebec’s Plan Nord by Premier Jean Charest. It’s a 25-year, $80-billion economic, social and environmental development strategy for Quebec’s massive northern territory.
Sound familiar? The parallels between Plan Nord and Alberta’s oil sands occurred to Robert Yalden during the Montrealer’s last visit to Alberta. “I was struck by how much history there was to the endeavour,” says Yalden, a partner with Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP. “By how much investment, how much public planning for the development of infrastructure necessary for the private sector, how much forethought and long-term thinking was required to understand, back in the 1960s and 1970s, that the oil sands could become an extremely important part of the Alberta economy.” Looking at his province’s Plan Nord, he sees the need for the same type of long-term planning and vision.
And, perhaps, the need to learn from Alberta’s missteps along the way, because there have been a few.