To encourage commuters to abandon their cars, Quebec wants to build a brand new early childhood center (CPE) less than 200 meters from Highway 20, in Sainte-Julie. And this, even if a CPE in the region has already withdrawn, for fear that the pollution will harm the little ones.
What there is to know
An 80-place early childhood center (CPE) could be built on land in a park-and-ride lot less than 200 meters from Highway 20, in Sainte-Julie.
In July 2023, the board of directors of the CPE which was to open this new facility withdrew, due to the dangers to the health of children and educators.
The Ministry of Family has launched a new call to find CPE interested in settling there.
A thousand parking spaces, businesses accessible by car and, right next door, the incessant ballet of traffic on the highway: this is where an early childhood center could soon be set up.
Standing on the vacant land, 130 meters from the highway, Pascale Bourgeois cannot explain why the Ministry of Family “persists, even persists” in wanting to install a CPE in this location.
“I find it appalling. We know very well that air pollutants linked to road traffic are dispersed over a distance of 50 to 500 meters along motorways. The further away you go, the lower the pollutant load,” says M.me Bourgeois, doctor and mother, who is involved in this issue as a citizen.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
Pascale Bourgeois, mother and doctor who contests the location chosen for the future CPE
The path to the construction of this 80-place CPE has seen twists and turns. At the beginning of 2023, it was announced that the Julie-Soleil CPE, which already has three installations, would pilot the project. However, a few months later, the board of directors withdrew, after being made aware of the health risks linked to the proximity of a highway.
Withdrawing from this project after having made the public announcement was a “heartbreaking” decision, explains France Mayeu, general director of this CPE.
“We know very well that parents wait for these places, but they no longer choose [leur service de garde], they go where there is room. And in our mission, we could not move forward with this project: we were going to put the health of the children and our staff at risk,” says M.me Mayeu.
” We asked [à la Ville de Sainte-Julie] if we had another piece of land to offer us, but there are no others. This is the one,” she continues.
The City of Sainte-Julie did not wish to grant us an interview on this subject.
Last February, the Ministry of Family therefore launched another call to find someone who would like to open a facility in this location. “The projects received are being analyzed,” we are told.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
The site where the Ministry of Families wishes to build the future CPE, in Sainte-Julie, less than 200 meters from Highway 20.
“The construction of a CPE is one of the components of a large-scale project which includes the development of incentive parking and a bus terminus, the construction of access ramps to the highway 20 and the extension of Boulevard Armand-Frappier and Rue Murano,” writes Wendy Whittom, spokesperson for this ministry.
The objective, she adds, is to “put in place means that encourage the citizens of Sainte-Julie to use public transportation.”
Harmful to health
The Quebec Association of Physicians for the Environment (AQME) is among those who raised the alarm when they saw that an early childhood center would be built so close to the highway.
“The AQME recommended a buffer zone of 300 meters along highways for what we call the construction of sensitive uses, therefore daycares, schools, hospitals, but also residences for seniors,” explains Johanne Elsener , collaborator of this association.
A recommendation, she says, which has not found an echo in Quebec so far.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
Several tens of thousands of vehicles pass by the future location of the CPE every day.
“Air pollution in children is associated with several serious health problems,” adds Mme Elsener, who cites in particular asthma and cognitive development problems in children.
This is without taking into account the noise emitted by the passage of tens of thousands of vehicles. “We know that noise pollution can have impacts on health, particularly on sleep,” she explains.
On average, in 2022, 72,000 vehicles traveled every day on this portion of Highway 20, according to data from the Quebec Ministry of Transport.
The Ministry of Family indicates that it is not up to it to determine “whether the environment envisaged for a new installation is healthy”.
“These are studies carried out by independent experts,” writes Wendy Whittom, spokesperson for this ministry.
When a project plans to construct a building, “the CPE must carry out various studies and submit the results of the analyzes to the Ministry before acquiring the land and beginning the design work,” she adds.
“Once the analysis results are received, the Ministry takes note of them,” said M.me Whittom.
The director of the CPE Julie-Soleil said that at the time, she did not realize “the extent of the impacts on the health” of the children and the staff of settling so close to the highway.
But now that she has returned the places to Quebec, that the problems linked to the environment have been named and publicized, she wonders why the Ministry continues to look for other CPEs interested in this location, without undertaking a reflection.
She assures that the board of directors of her CPE is “living very well” with its decision to withdraw from the project, in line with its mission to ensure the safety of children.
“Parents trust us, it’s important to keep that trust,” says M.me Mayeu, who adds that parents also trust the Ministry of Family. “It’s a shared responsibility. »