MONTREAL - Half of Quebec's territory north of the 49th parallel will be off-limits to industrial development by 2035, Premier Charest announced Sunday.
The new policy will see 50 percent of the lands included in the Northern Plan off limits from industrial activities.
The leap to 50 percent is a significant increase from the initial 12 percent, which was later bumped up to 20 percent of protected areas.
The decision ensures that the government will meet the international target of 17 percent adopted under the Nagoya Convention in 2010.
Seven pilot projects will also be enacted in an aim to improve the knowledge and practice of Nordic conservation.
The province also promised Sunday to pass legislation that should ensure the implementation of sustainable development of the Northern Plan, which will be reviewed once a decade.
"No other government in the world has protected an area so vast in such a short span of time," said Charest in a press release.
With a file from The Canadian Press
