The Legault government is thinking more than ever about moving the ferry from Rivière-du-Loup to the port of Gros-Cacouna, maintaining that this option would be significantly less costly to maintain the river link with the Charlevoix region. However, this means that the ferries would sail directly into an area considered a nursery for belugas, a species particularly vulnerable to noise pollution.
The Société des traversiers du Québec (STQ) launched a call for interest on Tuesday, which ends on February 16, in order to find a shipowner who would be responsible for ensuring this ferry service between Bas-Saint-Laurent and the municipality. of Saint-Siméon, located on the north shore of the St. Lawrence estuary.
This step is part of a process underway for several months to decide, in particular, whether this transport service will continue to be based in Rivière-du-Loup or if it will be moved to the port of Gros-Cacouna. The municipality of Cacouna welcomes this option, but the mayor of Rivière-du-Loup, Mario Bastille, is opposed to it.
It was not possible to obtain an interview with the mayor, but the city’s communications department stressed by email that a move “is not an option.” “Moving the ferry into a commercial port presupposes, according to an expert consulted by the City, the construction of a new quay arm intended to accommodate the port facilities necessary for the operation of a ferry, that of a new waiting area for vehicles, and even a new road access road,” we add in this written response.
A question of costs
The “decision” will be taken by the Council of Ministers after the designation of a shipowner “capable of offering the same service – or an improved service – to the current crossing”, affirms in Duty the office of the Minister of Transport, Geneviève Guilbault.
At the same time, the minister’s office insists on emphasizing that “the costs of maintaining the crossing at Rivière-du-Loup (which includes several developments) are more than double that of developing the crossing at Cacouna.”
In short, maintaining the ferry at the current dock would be much more expensive than moving the service to the port of Gros-Cacouna. According to figures cited by a source familiar with the matter, the bill for the status quo on the ferry dock is estimated at a maximum of around $700 million due to the costs of improving port infrastructure.
You should know that the Société québécoise des infrastructures was mandated to develop a project which should ensure the sustainability of the river link. The objective is to build a quay “for a lifespan of 50 years” in order to put the ship into service. NM Saaremaa.
“The project will have to substantially reduce, or even eliminate, dredging and extend the service to the winter period, thus improving the current service,” specifies the dashboard of infrastructure projects from the Treasury Board secretariat.
Sediment dredging
However, the use of the Rivière-du-Loup quay, from where the NM Trans-St-Laurentlaunched in 1963, to go to Saint-Siméon, requires sediment dredging work on an annual basis in order to maintain the water depth necessary for ferry service.
The Legault government also authorized the STQ last year to dredge and dump sediment in essential beluga habitat for the next 10 years. However, there is no scientific study to assess the effects of dredging operations on this endangered species.
Up to 60,000 cubic meters of sediment will be dredged each year, then transported by boat (nearly 450 transports). They will be released into an area located in legally protected beluga habitat and which should be part of the Saguenay–St. Lawrence marine park expansion project. This project should come to fruition by the end of 2025.
According to an expert opinion from Fisheries and Oceans Canada, this region of the estuary is considered critical for “the most vulnerable segment of the population” of this small cetacean, namely females and their young. The maritime area of Cacouna, located nearby, is particularly important for births. It is also a crucial habitat for species of fish on which the beluga feeds.
In this context, moving the ferry to the port of Gros-Cacouna would reduce dredging needs, but would increase maritime traffic in the Cacouna sector, where dredging work is also necessary, but less often than in Rivière. -the wolf’s. Added to this would be the commercial development of the port, supported by the Legault government, which could also increase noise pollution and disturbance.
This area is so frequented by the symbolic marine mammal of the St. Lawrence that the Legault government inaugurated a first terrestrial observatory there last year under the responsibility of the Wolastoqiyik Wahsipekuk Maliseet First Nation. The latter is located very close to the port of Gros-Cacouna.
A “complex” problem
Scientific director of the Marine Mammal Research and Education Group, Robert Michaud believes that the possibility of moving the ferry, which has made more than 1,600 crossings in the year 2022-2023, “raises interesting and complex questions”.
It must be said that noise pollution is one of the main threats facing the beluga in the estuary. In this context, moving the quay could expose more animals to shipping noise. “But if we reduced dredging activities, would that be beneficial for the belugas? We ask ourselves the question. »
Mr. Michaud therefore believes above all that scientists lack information to speak with certainty about the repercussions of the project on a species which shows no sign of recovery. He mentions in particular the question of the route of the ships, which must go around the Ile aux Lièvres each crossing. The passage of ships to the north or south of the island, depending on the time of year, could make it possible to avoid important areas for feeding females.