Mines, sorting center, container transhipment: several business projects face opposition from citizens living nearby. Among the latest, two propane transshipment projects have been blocked in Montérégie. Is it increasingly difficult to obtain social acceptability for industrial projects in Quebec?
Vicky Jodoin and Yannick Gagné moved into their dream home with their one-year-old daughter and two dogs in January 2022. Large, bright, with an above-ground pool and a huge lot overlooking on a soybean field, it is located in the Rural Municipality of Upton.
A few months after their arrival, they swallowed the wrong thing when they found a leaflet in their mailbox, from the Groupe Suroît company. They learned that part of the meadow a few dozen meters from their home was to be transformed into a transshipment and propane storage site.
“We started to stress, to ask questions. I was trying to find out why the municipality had accepted the project, but my elected official was never able to give convincing arguments. What will it bring us compared to the list of disadvantages? asked the pharmacist.
The couple were primarily concerned for their safety, but also for the noise and dust generated by industrial activities and the passage of trucks.
“We thought about selling the house,” said the construction worker. But it would have been necessary to sell at a loss. Instead, we fought. »
Mme Jodoin and Mr. Gagné found a group of citizens who had been mobilizing vigorously since the fall. The latter even published a pamphlet this winter with a clear message: “Let’s not be the next Lac-Mégantic. The danger to public safety, declining property values and the loss of quality agricultural land are among their complaints.
“We realized that people hadn’t heard of this project, even though it’s less than two kilometers from the school and the village. We wanted to inform people, ”explained Catherine Plante, one of the core members of the group, named Upton without flame.
Blocked at the last minute
However, the Groupe Suroît project had been underway since 2010, in various versions. The company had notably succeeded in obtaining the dezoning of its land by the Commission de protection du territoire agricole du Québec.
Presence at city council meetings, petition of more than 700 signatures from residents, demonstration, the members of Upton sans flamme have done everything possible to tell the City that citizens reject the handling of dangerous products near residential areas.
In a close vote, the city council finally leaned in favor of the opponents. A regulation that came into effect in mid-September stipulates that a space of 240 meters must be left between any installation “intended for the storage or transhipment of toxic, explosive or combustible materials, and the nearest residence”. This measure has the result of preventing Groupe Suroît from carrying out the project on its land.
“If we have a message to pass on, it’s ‘get involved at the municipal level,’ said Daniel Morin, one of the members of Upton Sans Flamme.
For his part, the president and CEO of Groupe Suroît, Marquis Grégoire Junior, feels betrayed. “We have worked together with the municipality for the past twelve years. And there, we decide to change the rules of the game just before the realization, “he explained.
The company had already sent a formal notice to the City in the spring, following the adoption of a first version of the by-law. Mr. Grégoire confirms that a lawsuit for damages is in preparation in order to assert his rights, judging that the 240-meter rule is not justified on a scientific level. He assures that his propane depot will be safe, in particular because the tanks will be buried underground. He also points out that he considerably reduced and modified his project this year after listening to citizens’ concerns.
Energy security issue
Mr. Grégoire is looking for a new location for his project, which aims to supply farmers in the region. However, propane installations do not seem to be popular in the sector. The neighboring municipality of Acton Vale this month rejected a zoning change that could have allowed the advent of a project by the company Trackvale.
For the Association québécoise du propane, this resistance “to setting up infrastructure for the storage and transshipment of propane does nothing to help the energy security of propane in Quebec”.
“Supply chain challenges are forcing propane companies to stockpile more propane to address things beyond the industry’s control, such as the risk of railroad strikes, weather events, derailments […] “, justified by email the director general of the association, Alain St-Pierre, adding that there is a growing demand from Quebec businesses and residences for propane.
Conscious citizens
According to Corinne Gendron, professor in the Department of Strategy, Social and Environmental Responsibility at UQAM, more citizens today contest projects that do not correspond to their vision of the development of their community. This has sounded the death knell for some projects, she says, especially when they “impose liabilities (pollution, landscape alteration, nuisance) without providing benefits (beautification, cultural enrichment, jobs)”.
“More educated and better informed, citizens today have an opinion on the development of their territory and expect to participate in the decisions that concern them since they will have an impact on their daily lives,” said Ms.me Gendron.
Lawyer Roger Payment has represented several promoters who have been thwarted by new municipal councils, often with the aim of protecting green spaces. However, companies sometimes have acquired rights, and regulatory changes can constitute disguised expropriations, since the promoter “finds himself in a situation where he can no longer do anything with his land”.
Thus, the court ruled in favor of Ray-Mont Logistiques when the Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough refused to grant the permit necessary for the construction of its container transshipment platform. The mining company Canada Carbon sued the municipality of Grenville-sur-la-Rouge in 2018, which caused thousands of dollars in legal fees to the latter, despite an amicable settlement in 2020.
According to Me Payment, certain types of projects, such as mines and landfills, will always be daunting for citizens. “It tends to mobilize residents and elicit strong reactions, often on the basis of the ‘not in my backyard’ syndrome, when we know very well that these services are necessary,” he believes.
Companies should consult the population from the start of the project, in order to build it according to the values and aspirations of the citizens, advise both Mme Gendron than Me Payment.