The suburbs and the countryside have become the new El Dorado for a growing number of residents of large centres. This stimulates urban sprawl that threatens natural environments, agricultural land and drinking water supply, in addition to increasing the pressure on municipalities called upon to manage the unbridled growth of their population with limited resources. Third and last article in our series on the urban sprawl that is eating away at Quebec.
Review of municipal taxation, increased protection of agricultural land and natural environments, creation of a “water resources office”: at a time when more and more Quebecers are leaving the cities for the suburbs and the countryside, possible solutions flock to curb an urbanization that is harmful to the environment.
It’s time for reform, according to Gérard Beaudet, professor at the School of Urban Planning and Landscape Architecture at the University of Montreal. To curb urban sprawl, the Quebec government should first revise the taxation of cities, he believes. Currently, municipalities continue to rely heavily on property tax to fill their coffers.
The owner of a condominium worth $400,000 in Montreal is also exposed to the same tax burden as a single-storey house of the same value, illustrates Mr. Beaudet, according to whom residents who the choice to live in “dense buildings” should benefit from tax advantages in order to encourage this way of life. The development plans and urban plans of the cities of the province could also be reviewed to encourage density.
“All of this can be used to control urban sprawl. The problem is that there is no political will,” sighs the expert. “When the government itself sets a bad example, it’s hard to ask municipalities to act differently,” he adds.
In recent decades, “all public policies have encouraged urban sprawl,” says professor and member of the Center for Research on Territorial Development at the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi, Martin Simard, who believes also that a review of municipal taxation is necessary.
Protection of agricultural land
However, the solution cannot only be fiscal. The government should tighten laws and regulations to further protect the territory, observes Mr. Simard.
He cites the example of too many agricultural lands threatened by real estate development. Adopted in 1978, the Act respecting the protection of agricultural land and activities leaves the door open to zoning changes for real estate projects by cities to which developers request them, according to him: “In some cases, we has dezoning too easy. »
General manager of the Union des producteurs agricole (UPA), Charles-Félix Ross is well aware of the pressure exerted by sprawl on arable land. Especially since the phenomenon is not new. For decades, urbanization has eaten away at agricultural land, which in fact represents only 2% of Quebec’s territory and is essentially located in the St. Lawrence Valley.
Should we review the law that protects arable land? “We should above all organize ourselves so that the spirit of the current law is respected and that we stop turning to agricultural land to build this or that project or all the infrastructure that accompanies urbanization”, replies- he.
On the subject of a tax reform, Mr. Ross is not opposed to it, denouncing in the same breath the immobility: “If it is the financing of the municipalities the problem, let us move! Let’s find solutions. In terms of taxation, it does not change. The mayors’ lobby is not moving. We draw up development plans, then we respect them more or less. And we continue to develop in the same way as we did in the past: on a case-by-case basis. »
And the natural spaces?
Natural environments should also be given greater consideration in land use planning, notes Kim Marineau, president of Biodiversité conseil, a scientific consulting firm: “Every time we build, we destroy natural environments that are habitats for animals, insects and bacteria. They are also ecosystems that play a role in capturing and filtering the water we consume, for example. »
Should we do what the Ontario government did in 2005, when it protected more than 8,000 km2 of green space in the Greater Toronto Area? No buildings can be built in this “green belt”, which includes agricultural land as well as rivers and fragile habitats.
“It may be part of the solution, even if it displaces the problem. Here, we could observe it to a certain extent; the framework for the Metropolitan Community of Montreal has not prevented the attraction for municipalities that are a little further away,” says Kim Marineau.
The solution depends above all on an understanding of the role that communities play, according to her, accompanied by action on the part of the federal government as well as the provincial government and the municipalities. The decisions they make today will shape the challenges cities will face in the years to come. She once again cites the example of the water supply.
A natural heritage to watch
On the subject of water management, the president of the Order of Geologists of Quebec (OGQ), Carlos Pelletier-Martinez, says: “We are concerned about the apparent laxity of the laws and the referral to municipalities and MRCs , the responsibility to define and regulate the uses and conservation of this natural heritage. »
According to him, the “professional and scientific burden” should not be assumed only by the municipalities. It is up to the Quebec government to act, according to the OGQ. And the solution ? The creation of a Quebec Water Resources Office which would carry out work and research to assess the quantity and quality of water and the use made of it. This could arbitrate conflicts of use and have the power to verify usage and fine users for deleterious behavior vis-à-vis an improved law.
The Mayor of Cowansville, Sylvie Beauregard, is also aware of the role of municipalities in curbing the repercussions of urban sprawl. For its part, it intends to proceed with an “overhaul” of the urban plan in force in this municipality in the Eastern Townships in order to ensure the long-term protection of green spaces. According to data from Statistics Canada, the population of this municipality, which had already increased by 8% between 2011 and 2016, jumped by 11.6% in the following five years.
“Yes, we want to densify a lot, but not anywhere in the municipality,” says the mayor, in office since 2017, who says she has to juggle discordant positions with residents of the area. They want to “protect green spaces”, but “do not want too many high buildings”, notes the mayor, who particularly wishes to “supervise new constructions more” to prevent them from encroaching on the green sectors of the city. municipality.