THE NATURE RESERVE

"A private island without legal status can in practice be better protected through assiduous monitoring by its owner than a public island with status, but not subject to any monitoring. The protection of nesting habitats, through the granting of a status, is an essential step everywhere; but without a permanent presence or adequate monitoring, the status alone offers no guarantee of protection. »

 

Gaston Déry, guardian of Île aux Pommes

A nature reserve in a private environment

This reflection by Gaston Déry inspired an avenue of solution that would make it possible to achieve the objective of protection in perpetuity, without excessively restricting the privileges of private property. The Government of Quebec adopted the Natural Heritage Conservation Act in 2003. Under the terms of this Act, a private natural environment may be legally recognized by the Minister of the Environment for the purpose of ensuring its conservation, provided that it has specific biological, ecological, wildlife, floristic, geological, geomorphological or landscape characteristics.

After discussions with the family, steps have been taken in this direction. On May 19, 2004, the Île aux Pommes Nature Reserve was recognized as a Nature Reserve for a perpetual period by the Minister of the Environment under the Natural Heritage Conservation Act. Île aux Pommes then became the first island in the St. Lawrence Estuary to enjoy such a status. As such, we have identified activities that are prohibited in perpetuity, such as the use of pesticides, the introduction of non-native plants, and, given the fragility of the environment, limiting the number of people or any other activity that is incompatible with an environment hosting an eider colony. In addition, travel is prohibited in the nature reserve during nesting, with the exception of biologists assigned to scientific monitoring. Since then, other private organizations in the Lower St. Lawrence have taken advantage of this status as private nature reserves for some of their properties.