Citizens of the Laurentians are launching a heartfelt cry to regulate the residential complex which, according to them, threatens the region’s wetlands.
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“It was all wooded. There were conifers and deciduous trees. There is a swamp all around. Everything has been razed,” protests Jeannot Aucoin.
The president of the Association for the Protection of Blue Lake has long been concerned about the destruction of the forest around Lake Saint-Hippolyte, a municipality of some 11,000 people near Prévost.
Two weeks ago, the deforestation of land for the development of around thirty houses whose construction has not yet been approved by the municipality was the last straw.
“It was not done based on wetlands,” he denounces.
“Horrible”
On the other side of the lake, Julie Brazeau discovered a desolate scene when she went to show her snowshoe trail to a friend.
“There were no trees left, nothing left. I cried because it was so horrible,” says the woman who transformed her childhood chalet by the lake to raise her two children there.
Julie Brazeau is saddened to see the snowshoe trails destroyed for residential development.
Photo Anouk Lebel
This is the third phase of a real estate development project of 275 houses, explains the developer, Patrick Bissonnette. “Everything is consistent,” he said.
The municipality confirms having authorized the deforestation for the construction of a street with a view to the construction of 30 houses for which permits have however not yet been granted.
“They will not be built in wetlands,” assures the deputy mayor, Chantal Lachaine.
“We will reach the end”
“We have no planning for our territory, we have no overall vision, we are going one project at a time,” denounces Sonia Tremblay, independent municipal councilor.
“It’s a problem everywhere in Quebec. All that is left to build are beautiful woodlands or wetlands. We will eventually get to the end of this,” comments Kim Marineau, biologist and president of the firm Biodiversité Conseil.
The teacher at the University of Sherbrooke is concerned about the consequences on the water table and rainwater management.
“We will have to pay with more flooding, more pollution of waterways. “It’s a problem that we’re putting off until later, but the damage will be significant,” warns the expert.