SQ dismantle blockade at oil exploration site near Gasp

Provincial police backed by an armoured car have dismantled a blockade at an oil exploration site about 20 kilometres from the city of Gasp.

A 29-year-old man was arrested in the police operation last night and has been charged with mischief, theft and break and enter.

Last week, masked protesters had laid down tree trunks to block access to a road that goes to the Galt #4 well, owned by oil-exploration company Junex.

Junex's Galt oil project is one of the most advanced projects of its kind in Quebec.

• Masked protesters block road to oil exploration company's well

In a post on an anarchist website, the protest was described as an effort to reassert the sovereignty of the Mi'kmaq First Nation.

However, the chief of the Gespeg nation, Manon Jeannotte, said she wasn't aware of any planned protests.

Police said they tried to negotiate a peaceful settlement to the dispute, but the protesters did not want to enter into a dialogue with them.