Wood Skidding on the Kinojévis River During Winter, Around the Airport Bridge

River-driving was prohibited after as a result of the mercury pollution created by sinking trees.

In the middle of the 1970s, the ‘Regroupement des mouvements populaires du Témiscamingue’ (Grassrott movements in Témiscamingue) started a campaign to stop river-driving activities on lakes and rivers of Abitibi-Témiscamingue. Quickly, many citizens and regional groups supported this claim. They claim the watercourse pollution and the damages caused to riverfront property owners of Témiscamingue Lake was enough to support their claim. After several weeks of advocating and other pressure tactics, Tembois company obliged and ended its river-driving business in the region. That is when the cartage industry replaced wood tugging to supply the Témiscaming factory. In 1978, log driving camps are closed and river tugs from the upper Ottawa region stop their activity.

Quote : Marc Riopel, « L’industrie forestière en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, depuis 1960 », dans À travers le temps enr., Hudson, 23 décembre 2002.