Culvert removal on trail 8 in Gatineau Park

As part of the ongoing maintenance of the Gatineau Park (GP) trail system located on National Capital Commission (NCC) lands, work is required on a section of trail 8. The trail crosses a creek considered as fish habitat. The current culvert is too small and does not adequately process waterflow during floods. This causes constant trail erosion and transportation of sediments into the waterway.

The NCC must supervise corrective work done by Demsis as part of the GP trail maintenance contract. The culvert removal on trail 8 in GP is a project that is subject to a federal land use, design, and transaction approval (FLUDTA) under the National Capital Act.  This process is designed to ensure that projects on federal lands will contribute to Canada's Capital being a source of pride for Canadians.

The culvert will be removed and replaced by a footbridge of sufficient length to allow the foundations of the bridge to be placed outside the creek waterbed. The footbridge will be placed on composite frames sitting on granular material. Riprap will be installed on the edge of the trail to guide the water and prevent erosion. In addition, the current area of the culvert will be enlarged to the width of the creek to prevent creating a bottleneck that could lead to overflow. As the project is situated in fish habitat, it has been reported to Fisheries and Oceans Canada for mitigation options.

The site is situated less than 250m from Champlain parkway (via trail 37). The walking path is 1,5 to 2m in width, which will facilitate access via the parkway.

The work is scheduled in late August 2023 and will take one week to complete. A small mechanical shovel (3.5 tons) and a small, tracked loader will be used on site to bring in the granular material needed to restore the eroded trail. More delicate work on the edge of the creek and finishing touches will be done by hand.

This work will improve sustainability of the trail while diminishing impacts on the watercourse and the fish habitat. The trail will be closed during maintenance. Vegetation will not be impacted by the work.

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Latest update

October 31, 2023 – The National Capital Commission issued its Notice of Determination and determined that the project is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

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Contacts

National Capital Commission
Environmental Assessment
40 Elgin Street
Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5A8
Email: IA-EI@ncc-ccn.ca


  • Location

    • Gatineau Park (Quebec)

  • Nature of Activity

    • Recreation and Tourism

  • Assessment Status

    Completed

  • Start Date

    2023-07-21

  • Proponent

    National Capital Commission

  • Authorities

    • National Capital Commission

  • Assessment Type

    Project on federal lands

  • Reference Number

    85783
Disclaimer

This map is for illustrative purposes. The markers represent the approximate locations based on available data. More than one marker may be identified for a given assessment.

 

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...within 200 kilometres
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