Let’s Talk Transportation: Environmental Effects Evaluation of the Lac-Mégantic Railway Bypass Project

On July 6, 2013, a freight train carrying 72 tank cars of crude oil, which was parked at the top of the hill in Nantes, Québec, started to roll and derailed in Lac-Mégantic, Québec, causing several tank cars to explode, leading to 47 fatalities.

On May 11, 2018, the Prime Minister of Canada and the Premier of Québec announced funding for a 12.5 km rail bypass project bypassing downtown Lac-Mégantic. The new track will travel through the municipalities of Frontenac, Lac-Mégantic and Nantes between milepost 113.27 of the Moosehead subdivision and milepost 3.49 of the Sherbrooke subdivision.

To move ahead with the project, an application for authorization for the construction of the project must be submitted to the Canadian Transportation Agency, in accordance with section 98 of the Canada Transportation Act. Transport Canada and the railway operator are currently preparing the necessary documentation to submit the application to the Canadian Transportation Agency for the bypass project.

Transport Canada held a public consultation from November 18 to December 27, 2024, to gather public comments on three environmental reports that are relevant to the Environmental Effects Evaluation:

• the Groundwater and Potable Water Well Monitoring Plan
• the Wetlands Monitoring Plan
• the updated Hydrogeological Report

The evaluation identifies and evaluates the project’s potential environmental impacts. It also proposes ways to limit or reduce these impacts. This document is the rail operator’s responsibility.

The Environmental Effects Evaluation

This Environmental Effects Evaluation report combines various studies, some of which have previously been consulted with citizens. This updated version, produced by the rail operator, lists and describes all the potential environmental impacts of the Lac-Mégantic rail bypass.

The Evaluation is based on the result of past public consultations and expert reports such as the:

• 2017 and 2019 process of the Bureau d'audiences publiques sur l'environnement du Québec, following which Transport Canada agreed to implement numerous mitigation measures and compensation measures to minimize the project's impact on the community and the environment
• 2022 consultation on the initial hydrogeological study, following which additional mitigation measures were added
• 2024 consultation on three environmental reports (Groundwater and Potable Water Well Monitoring Plan, Wetlands Monitoring Plan, updated Hydrogeological Report)

The report first describes the environment (such as study area, biophysical components, soils and groundwater, hydrology and surface water quality, fauna and flora). It then describes the environmental effects and how these were measured. Finally, it presents the updated mitigation measures to reduce the project’s potential negative effects on the environment and its residual impacts after the measures are applied. This is a critical part of the Canadian Transportation Agency application.

We want to hear from you

We want to hear from people who live in Frontenac, Lac-Mégantic and Nantes. Your opinions and feedback are important.

How to participate

• Choose “Register” at the top of the page
• Read the Environmental Effects Evaluation Report(External link) to better understand how it will support the construction of the rail bypass
• Join the discussion forum under the “Have your say” tab or upload a document through the “Submissions” tab
• Send your feedback by email to TC.InfoLacMegantic.TC@tc.gc.ca(External link)
• Printed versions of the Evaluation are available in both official languages at the city halls of Frontenac and Nantes. For Lac-Mégantic, the copies will be available at the
  Nelly-Arcan Media Library located at 3700 Lemieux Street, Lac-Mégantic, Quebec G6B 1S7.