There will soon be far less green on the Lachine Canal.
Parks Canada is set to cut down 235 trees as part of an ongoing construction project, and people in the area are not happy.
“They shouldn’t do that!” said Julie Lachance, who walks along the canal during her daily commute.
“That’s really bad for our environment,” said Lasalle resident Matthew Chang.
The trees are set to be felled on a stretch of the north side of the canal between Chemin du Musée and the Gauron and Lafleur bridges. They are being cut down as part of an ongoing $170-million project to renovate the canal’s crumbling infrastructure.
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“The decision to move ahead with work on vegetation is made after analyzing the constraints of each infrastructure project. For example, in the case of work done on the canal walls, it is often necessary to dig trenches and remove clusters of vegetation that have grown directly in or near the walls,” Parks Canada explained in an email, saying the cutting would begin in “mid October.”
“I understand they have to do it, but it’s a shame nonetheless,” said Lasalle resident Albert Diroberto. “They’ve been around a long time, those trees.”
The crumbling walls of the canal are slowing being replaced, and some trees have spread roots in their many deep cracks. It’s hard for people in the area to accept 235 of the trees will soon be gone.
“I think humans have to adapt to nature, not the other way around,” Lachance said.
“It’s going to destroy our environment here in Lasalle,” Chang said.
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Since last fall, the construction on the canal has caused a number of road and bike path closures. The canal is one of the oldest pieces of infrastructure in the country and was due for a facelift.
“Parks Canada is working with the selected contractors to minimize the work’s environmental impact and to protect existing vegetation,” Parks Canada said.
The federal agency has also committed to planting more trees after the project in completed, but for some, that’s not enough.
“You don’t just cut them down to put them up again,” Lachance said.
“It will take very long for them to reach that splendour,” Diroberto said.
Parks Canada added all infrastructure projects undergo an environmental assessment to ensure that mitigation measures are in place and that work is conducted outside bird-nesting and migratory periods.
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