Posted at 5:00 a.m.
The government of Quebec refuses to protect Mont Rigaud, in Montérégie, from mining development. It also refuses to protect the area’s groundwater from these activities, much to the dismay of local officials.
“In an ideal world, we would completely ban mining activity on our territory,” says Patrick Bousez, prefect of the MRC de Vaudreuil-Soulanges. But Quebec sees things differently.
The MRC wishes to protect Mont Rigaud, which it describes as “an exceptional natural jewel and a major tourist center”, from mining activity. It requires the same for aquifer recharge zones, ie areas where water infiltrates into the ground to recharge the water table. These are critical, since 18 of the 23 municipalities in the MRC depend on groundwater.
And until today, “we have a refusal, it’s not complicated,” said Mr. Bousez with a sigh.
The MRC made its initial request in November 2019, as part of the development of its land use and development plan presented to the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (MERN) and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and ‘Housing (MAMH). It can be read that the MRC intends to “identify the entire territory as an incompatible territory [avec] mining activity”, and that there is “currently no mining title active or in process”.
The Planning and Town Planning Act provides that the RCMs may “delimit any territory incompatible with mining activity”. A MAMH guidance document lists activities that may warrant this designation, including conservation activities or water withdrawal for human consumption.
[Le mont Rigaud] does not fit within the parameters of the guidance document [notamment parce qu’il n’est] not yet designated as a whole as a regional park or protected area.
The MRC of Vaudreuil-Soulanges
“It goes without saying that this natural space is not destined to be ‘holed’ by mining activities”, we continue.
As for the aquifer recharge zones, “it is imperative to protect these vulnerable zones in terms of quality and quantity”, maintains the MRC, since “mining activities can have a substantial impact on the pollution potential and on the amount of water that could be withdrawn”.
“The protection of this essential resource for our population depends on it,” concludes the 73-page supporting document obtained by The Press. This request gave rise to numerous exchanges between Quebec and the MRC, according to Mr. Bousez, without there being any progress in this regard.
Refusal all the way
The whole of Mont Rigaud and the aquifer recharge zones “cannot be considered as [territoires incompatibles avec l’activité minière] “, responds the MAMH in a letter dated 1er December 2021 that The Press was able to consult. These “do not constitute conservation territories for which exploration and mining activities are prohibited”, it is explained.
The MAMH gave this answer “on the basis of the opinion of the MERN”, it was specified in response to questions from The Presswithout giving more details on the reasoning.
PHOTO ROBERT SKINNER, THE PRESS
Sign asking Rigaud residents to pay attention to their water consumption
Despite the directives, the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources can use his discretionary power to protect a place from mining, which he refuses to do so far, according to the MRC. The MERN did not respond to questions from The Press at the time of this writing.
“Clearly, it’s a problem if mines could come and settle, either in the aquifer recharge zone or even nearby,” says Geneviève Lachance, mayor of Saint-Lazare. She fears the risks of contamination of drinking water since 100% of the residents of her municipality consume groundwater.
It is very important to protect this resource.
Geneviève Lachance, Mayor of Saint-Lazare
“I will not hide my concerns from you, especially since Mont Rigaud has always been the subject of extensive protection,” said François Pleau, mayor of Sainte-Marthe, where the southern slope of the mountain is located. much of which is not protected from mining activity. Mr. Pleau sees there “a certain inconsistency in not supporting the protection requested even if we have a consensus with the mayors of our MRC”.
” We can not […] simply prohibit exploration and mining in Vaudreuil-Soulanges,” reads today in the MRC’s land use and development plan, which is to be officially adopted in the coming weeks. And this, despite “the need to protect our fragile groundwater which is our drinking water supply for 96,000 citizens and the exceptional nature of Mount Rigaud”.
“The delay in the adoption of this plan is due in particular to the numerous political representations made to the ministries and to the ministers themselves in order to prevent these activities which, we believe, have no place in the region”, denounces is there in this document.
To reach Frédérik-Xavier Duhamel, write to him by email at [email protected].