Saint-André de Kamouraska cut down in bulk, without the slightest authorization, the trees of a cemetery which is part of a protected site, located in the heart of this old 18th century village.e century. Since this untimely cutting, the resulting landscape has continued to spark discussions in the region.
This is because the regulations of this municipality located in front of the St. Lawrence River provide in full for “the maintenance of existing trees on the heritage site”.
This is not the first time that these trees have been cut down without any care on this supposedly protected site. This time, a specially prepared basket was used to cut down century-old maple trees to the ground. These are tree stumps that now point towards the winter sky.
“We wonder why other parishes are so interested in this,” he said. Duty the general director of the municipality, Mme Nathalie Blais. “We have to move forward. Let’s stop talking about it and move on. » She returned The duty to the mayor of this village of just under 700 inhabitants, Mr. Gervais Darisse.
Not the first time
This type of cuts have already occurred on this protected site, the mayor immediately indicates to the Duty. According to him, the trees were not cut down, but “pruned”. “This is not the first time these trees have been pruned like this. I was told that’s how you prune. And I was told that’s how it grows back. »
The mayor says that these century-old trees will come back to life under the spring sun. From the stumps left between the graves there should be reborn branches, he believes. “I would not be surprised if branches grew back in the spring,” says Gervais Darisse. “I’m pretty confident that it will come out of the branches and that it won’t cause them to die. »
According to the mayor, a similar cut of these same trees had been made “thirty or forty years ago”. The trees had resisted the operation well, he assures us.
Another bell ringing
At the parish factory, it was Pierre Lebel who was responsible, last November, for cutting down these trees. He gives a different voice from that of the mayor. “The trunks that are there will have to be removed. » So these trees won’t grow back, as the mayor claims? ” No no ! The trunks that are there will all disappear! We are going to replant new trees. That’s what we wanted to do. ” For what ? “There are people who found that branches could be dangerous. And it was cut. It was done. That’s all. » He says he is waiting for advice from the City to know what will be replanted and how.
Can we so easily evade state law regarding the protection of common heritage? This is not the first time that radical pruning work has been carried out without the slightest authorization in Saint-André-de-Kamouraska. A resolution adopted in December by the municipality notes this. The mayor readily admits: “It happened for something else, yes. For a building, among others »
However, the municipality admits to having never thought it appropriate to react before. “This is the first time we’ve warned them.” Without that changing anything. What purpose does the law serve in this case? The mayor remains speechless.
A resident of Saint-André-de-Kamouraska who wishes to preserve her identity indicates to Duty that it is almost impossible to enforce the law on Quebec heritage from such a municipal authority. “Despite the regulations or structure to preserve heritage, if there is no accountability, vigorous democracy and local media, it is of little use. Everything happens to the purr of mechanical saws. »
No permission
Mr. Lebel, the president of the parish factory, confirms Duty that several works have been carried out in the past on the heritage site, without any prior authorization. “We didn’t know that. Nobody ever told us. »
An old shed has undergone the treatment: moved then pulled by a tractor. “They put it on rails and pulled it. We moved it to the west, the little garage. It was harmful. »
Will legal action be taken against the factory, as permitted by law? No, assures the mayor. “The law would allow us to prosecute. But our intention is to work collaboratively. » Everyone knows each other in this small village, adds the mayor. The links are tightly woven. “They are all volunteers who are doing their best,” he says to absolve, without approving, the work of the amateur pruners who ravaged the wooded cover of the cemetery.
The mayor insists: the parish wanted to do well. “Branches threatened to fall and break monuments. » Was it necessary to bring all these century-old trees back to the ground, while taking advantage of the operation to also prune large conifers? “I thought it was indeed special to also prune spruce trees.” Mayor Gervais Darisse has been at the head of his municipality for 14 years. Its village is part of a tourist circuit taken by lovers of the Kamouraska region.