Roy Dupuis is again mounting the barricades with the Rivers Foundation to save the Romaine, one of the last great pristine rivers of Quebec, which is threatened by a hydro-electric dam project.

“I have a new river flowing in my veins,” says Roy Dupuis, gazing at the rapids of the Romaine which cut deeply between the mountains and the cliffs.

His love for rivers is no secret.  And when it’s a question of protecting a pristine river the actor, who is also president and co-founder of the Rivers Foundation, shrinks from nothing.

Especially when it involves rafting down the river for a week-long expedition to witness the extraordinary beauty of this natural gem which flows for some 500 km north of Havre-Saint-Pierre on the North Coast.

Wavering between amazement and sadness at the thought that a setting of such great beauty could disappear, Roy Dupuis feels privileged to have “met” the river. He paddled down it, confronting the power of its rapids, felt it, listened to it, admired it and drank greedily from it.  Most of all he loved it.

“After getting to know this magnificent and unique river, I know that a day hasn’t gone by when I haven’t thought of the Romaine.

Having come here in the hope of saving the Romaine from an apparently predetermined fate, he hesitates and heaves a great sigh before maintaining that he really believes that his presence on the river could block Hydro-Quebec’s project.

Yes, I think so, otherwise I wouldn’t be here.  But at the same time it’s not a question I really ask myself, I just think it’s what I have to do because I know there’s no need for a dam.”

Bearing in mind that Quebec has an energy surplus and that the cost of production will be one of the highest in the Hydro-Quebec grid (9 cents per kw/h not counting the foreseeable overruns in the construction budget), he thinks that this dam is nonsense both on environmental and economic grounds.

According to him, before destroying a viable ecosystem and exploiting our natural resources in order to sell to the US (“because we’re able to”), it’s time to ask questions about the future of energy in Quebec.

“Hydro-Quebec is us, we own it and it’s our responsibility to get involved,” he says with conviction round the campfire which crackles under a sky glittering with thousands of stars. 

“It’s time we had a public debate to decide collectively what we want for the future and to stop uselessly harnessing rivers when we have other options like solar, geothermal or wind. Quebec is more intelligent than that.”

A native of Abitibi, Roy Dupuis has always had a love affair with wild rivers. His involvement in saving them stems from the late ‘90s with the “Adopt a River” campaign.  As a result in 2002 he co-founded the Rivers Foundation and represents it as president.

An unforgettable expedition

The members of the Rivers Foundation, Nature Quebec and the Society to Conquer Pollution descended the River Romaine by raft in the hope of saving it.

The Journal accompanied them on this expedition which was called SOS River Romaine.

In six days the team covered about 100km, pitching makeshift camps on sandy beaches or pebble islands.

The adventure proved to be dangerous in an environment where few people had ever set foot, with difficult hikes in the forest, unusually strong rapids and portages lasting several hours in the rain.

But the natural beauty of the surroundings, the rising of the full moon in the valley, the cliffs overhanging the river and the furious splendour of the torrent made this adventure a unique experience which will remain in the memory of each participant for a long time.