How Anticosti became the centre of a debate over oil and gas exploration

Plans to drill for oil and gas on anisland in theGulf of St. Lawrence has made Premier PhilippeCouillardthe target of environmentalists,with one group calling his decision to go ahead with the project "illogical and unacceptable."

Couillard has repeatedly saidhe's bound by an agreement signed by the previous Parti Qubcois government to allow for testing in Anticosti, a rocky, 200-kilometre stretch of landknown for its salmon fishing.

The dealwithQuebec City-basedPetroliaInc. was inked shortly before the 2014 election.

• Quebec will respect Petrolia drilling contract

"The contract is there. We have to follow it," Couillardsaid Tuesday at a news conference in Montreal.

"It doesn't mean that we're happy.We're going to protect that unique ecosystem, I can tell you that."

The exploratory drillinginvolvesfracking, a controversial practice where a mixture is pumped deep underground in orderto crack rocks and release natural gas, which risks affecting the water table.

In a statement, Petrolia said Wednesday it's committed to working with Anticostiresidents and being completely transparent about its plans.

Species at risk?

The province's EnvironmentMinistry confirmed this week thatPetroliawill beallowed to draw a total of 30 million litres of water at three testing sites.

Mostof thatwater will be drawn from rivers on the island, which could put local endangered salmon populations at risk, Montreal's Le Devoir newspaper reported.

The wastewater will be treated on site by an unknown method, then released directly into the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Patrick Bonin, a spokesman for Greenpeace Quebec, slammed Premier Philippe Couillard for backtrackingon the file.

"He said he did not want to exploit oil, but allows the exploration, the use of hydraulic fracturing at high risk in a fragile environment, with endangered species," Bonin told The Canadian Press.

The province announced in Marchit would honour the agreement withPetrolia,as long as it met environmental standards.

That decision came only four months after Couillard told CBC News he was prepared to pull the plug on the project, saying "the destruction of natural environment like Anticosti will not bear my signature."

Hopes for energy independence

The agreement for oil and gas explorationdates back toFebruary 2014.

Less than a month before calling an election,then-premierPauline Maroisannounced dealsbetween the province andPetrolia, Corridor Resources andMaurel& Prom.

"Today, Quebec is taking back its rights on natural resources," Marois said at the time, adding thatthe move was aimed atensuringQuebec's future independence from foreign oil.

Candidates in the current PQ leadership race have struck a very different tone.

Jean-Franois Lise, Vronique Hivon, Martine OuelletandAlexandre Cloutier have all come out against exploratory drilling on the island.

Lise, a top member of the PQgovernment that made the deal, said last month the circumstances were very different in 2014, and the drop in the price of oil now makes the project less appealing.

• Anticosti oil: Quebec chambers of commerce say drilling should go ahead