Just over a month before the start of the election campaign, the Ministère des Transports du Québec has launched preliminary work for the construction of the third link, but it has still not filed the “project notice” which will trigger the environmental assessment of the future tunnel. It will therefore not be possible for voters to know the real impacts of the road megaproject, which will nevertheless be a major environmental issue for the next election.
“No project notice concerning the project to establish a new link between Québec and Lévis (3e link) has been submitted to the Ministry of the Environment and the Fight against Climate Change (MELCC)”, confirmed the ministry in response to questions from the To have to.
However, “it is only after receiving a project notice that the MELCC sends the initiator of a project a directive in which the elements that the impact study must contain are specified”, recalled the department recently, in the context of a similar request.
Under Quebec legislation, the promoter of the third link, the Quebec Ministry of Transport (MTQ), must first submit a “project notice” to the MELCC. After the ministry has received this notice, it publishes a “directive” which specifies which elements must be analyzed as part of the impact study. In the case of a road project like this tunnel, these should probably include the impacts on the host communities, on the climate, on transport in the region and on the St. Lawrence River, but also the psychosocial effects associated with the project.
Once the study has been submitted to the MELCC, several ministries will be called upon to give their opinion on its “admissibility”. These opinions, as well as those of the MELCC, should lead to several exchanges between the proponent and the ministry. It is only at the end of this entire process that the study can be deemed admissible. All these steps usually require several months of work.
But that’s not all. The legislation then provides for the initiation of the evaluation procedure by the Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement (BAPE). The latter will then conduct public hearings before producing a report, which will be submitted to the government.
Project “necessary”
When does the MTQ intend to submit its “project notice” to the MELCC? The proponent of the $6.5 billion underground road project did not specifically answer this question from the To have to. “We are quickly aiming for 2023 for the filing of the project notice”, however indicated the MTQ. “An environmental impact study began in September 2021 and is continuing,” the ministry also argued. This is therefore currently carried out without the “directive” of the Ministry of the Environment.
“The Quebec-Lévis tunnel project will follow all the required environmental steps, the government has already indicated its intention to submit the project to the Environmental Impact Assessment and Review Procedure,” added the MTQ.
Regardless of the results of this environmental assessment, the Legault government has already announced that it will go ahead with its road project. “It’s an infrastructure that will be built, no offense to some people. Our role is to ensure that this is done in compliance with the Environment Quality Act and with the least possible impact on the environment”, argued in particular at the end of 2021 the Minister of the Environment of Quebec, Benoit Cart. This project is “useful and necessary”, according to him.
The Minister of Transport, François Bonnardel, for his part argued that it is “false” to say that the third link will promote urban sprawl. According to Mr. Charette, this new road link designed to facilitate travel between Quebec and Lévis would rather be “a great way” to counter urban sprawl.
Boreholes in the river
Proof of the government’s determination, drilling work is underway directly in the St. Lawrence River, in Quebec. Eight boreholes are planned by October, said the MTQ.
These boreholes, which will be drilled from a floating barge, “are part of a soil characterization study along the route of the tunnel”. It was the SNC-Lavalin/Englobe joint venture that was mandated by the ministry to carry out “this geotechnical investigation campaign”, including drilling and “laboratory analyses” as part of the construction project for the Quebec-Lévis tunnel. .
The MTQ also indicated that it holds all the necessary authorizations to carry out these drillings. Fisheries and Oceans Canada has confirmed that “seismic surveys and drilling” work has been authorized. The MELCC indicated for its part that the proponent proceeded by “declaration of conformity” to obtain the right to drill in the littoral of the St. Lawrence River.
Other similar works, launched in 2020, have made it possible to carry out no less than 20 boreholes. “It shows that we are doing the work. We want to carry out this project which is important for Lévis and the people of Quebec. It is a first step which is extremely serious, to seek out the scientific and technical data which will lead us to make the right decisions for the future, ”explained François Bonnardel over the past few days.
The tunnel boring machine should start digging in 2027, according to the schedule currently put forward by the government. The third link would be operational in 2032.