The two experts, Mohamed Benhaddadi and Guy Olivier, had previously submitted their dissertations to the committee. They had also worked with the Régie de l'énergie du Québec (Québec energy board) last year on a project focusing on the proposed Suroît thermal generating plant.

On March 8, also as part of its investigation into the context and issues of the Québec energy sector, the legislature committee heard another Polytechnique researcher, Elisabeth Varin of the  Department of Engineering Physics.

Along with Gilles Sabourin, an engineer with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Ms. Varin submitted a brief to the committee from the Québec section of the Canadian Nuclear Society. During their presentation, Ms. Varin and Mr. Sabourin asked the government to consider maintaining -- and even expanding -- the total amount of electricity produced with nuclear energy, in light of the fact that this form of production can provide Québecers with a secure energy supply while at the same time respecting the Kyoto Protocol.