Notice of Determination

Montreal – July 4, 2024 – The authorities have determined that the proposed project Repair and optimization of the railway bridge at Pie-IX entrance of the Port of Montreal is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

This determination was based on a consideration of the following factors:

• impacts on rights of Indigenous peoples;
• Indigenous knowledge;
• community knowledge;
• comments received from the public; and
• technically and economically feasible mitigation measures.

Mitigation measures taken into account for this determination are :

Soil stability

• Follow the recommendations of the geotechnical study for the stabilization of temporary slopes and the pumping of groundwater and runoff accumulated in the excavations;
• Construct temporary retaining walls when extending the abutments of the railway bridge.

Soil, surface and groundwater quality

• Do not throw any waste into the river. Remove, as soon as possible, any waste that may be transported to the river by runoff, wind or otherwise, and remove any waste that may have been accidentally sent to the river;
• Keep the job site free of accumulated garbage and debris. Temporarily store these items in leak-proof containers for this purpose and promote recycling;
• Remove unused materials, waste and debris of all kinds from the site throughout the work and dispose of them in an authorized site, in accordance with applicable regulations;
• Use biodegradable lubricants in equipment that must perform work near the river (within 30 m);
• Use drip pans under stationary devices and equipment that may leak oil or that need to be replenished periodically (generators, hydraulic shovels, etc.). Drip pans must have sufficient capacity to contain any potential spills;
• Supply equipment and machinery at a distance of more than 30 m from the river and at a minimum distance of 15 m from one of its tributaries (sewer grate, ditch, etc.), on impermeable surfaces dedicated to this purpose;
• Keep machinery, equipment and trucks used during the work in perfect condition and free of leaks of oil, petroleum products, diesel or any other liquid that may pollute the environment. Replace or repair defective machinery and vehicles as soon as possible;
• Have emergency response kits (absorbent products, waterproof bags, blowout preventers, gloves, etc.) available at all times near the work area and machinery refuelling areas to contain any spills; In the event of a spill of oil or any other noxious substances, all necessary means must be taken to stop the leak and contain the spilled product. Proceed with the recovery of the product and restore the premises. Notify, in order of priority, the Port of Montreal's control centre (514-283-7022 / Emergencies: 514-283-6911), ECCC's National Environmental Emergency Centre (514-283-2333) and MELCCFP's Environmental Emergency (1-866-694-5454) without delay;
• In the event of a spill to soil, ensure that the land is cleaned up, that contaminated soil is removed and disposed of at a licensed location, and that characterization is conducted;
• Develop an emergency plan that includes the names of the people and authorities to be contacted, as well as the measures to be implemented in the event of a spill;
• Manage contaminated soils in accordance with current regulations;
• Monitor and control the origin and quality of soil used for backfilling;
• Characterize the materials excavated in areas that are not characterized or deemed to be of questionable quality in order to determine their management method;
• Manage excavated soil to be disposed of off-site in accordance with the EQA, the SCWR, the RMI, the RCTSCE, the RSCTSC and the Excavated Soils Management Grid of the Intervention Guide in order to ensure appropriate protection for the surrounding natural environments, both terrestrial and aquatic;
• Stack contaminated soils away from the shoreline (at least 30 m), on membranes or
• impermeable surfaces and cover them with impermeable membranes;
• Install watertight sediment barriers to separate the work area surrounding the soil stacking areas of questionable quality and maintain them in good condition throughout the work;
• Recover, temporarily store in tanks and, if required, filter, decant or treat water generated by construction site activities (e.g., concrete mixer washwater, concrete curing water, excavation dewatering) or use any other approved method to comply with current discharge standards;
• Implement systems to capture runoff water that accumulates in excavations and a characterization program. Dispose of water in accordance with current regulations;
• Cover the manhole grates with a geotextile where fine particles are likely to infiltrate.

Air quality

• Use machinery in good working order to minimize the emission of air pollutants;
• Limit trucking and eliminate idling of stationary vehicles where possible;
• Thoroughly maintain and clean paved trucking roads and, if necessary, use appropriate dust suppressants on unpaved roads;
• Apply water and dust suppressants as necessary during demolition activities, on bare surfaces, traffic areas and piles of materials containing fine particles to prevent or reduce the spread of dust;
• Cover truck skips containing material likely to generate dust;
• Avoid operations during high winds;
• Limit the speed of heavy vehicles on the site to minimize dust raising;
• Ensure that workers are trained and understood on practices to minimize dust.

Avian fauna and special-status species

• For work that may disturb birds and cannot be carried out outside the birds' nesting period (mid-April to the end of August), check for the presence of nests prior to the work;
• Inform the MPA representative of the presence or absence of nests before the work begins;
• In the presence of active nests :
  • Wait until the chicks have left the nests before proceeding with any work that may disturb the birds or destroy the nests;
  • Establish a protective radius around the nest. The radius is to be defined according to the species.

Terrestrial vegetation and EVEE

• Check for the presence of EVEE beforehand before proceeding with the work;
• Inform the NPA representative of the presence/absence of an IAV prior to the commencement of the work;
• Clean machinery before entering the project and clean it again if it is used in an area affected by IAS, before moving it to an unaffected area. Cleanup should be done as far away from the river as possible (at least 60 m when possible);
• Transport cleanup residues and excavated material containing EEE to a licensed landfill.

Port activities and facilities

• Connecting new switches to tracks in coordination with railway operations so as not to jeopardize operations;
• Coordinate with the various users to ensure that the areas required for the road traffic diversion lanes are available during the work;
• Plan the sequence of demolition and construction work according to the use of the infrastructure and its users;
• Maintain spaces necessary for terminal facilities and activities during construction;
• Maintain access to the terminals of the various operators (Viterra and Logistec) in order to guarantee their operations;
• Provide for the presence of a security guard when the access booth to the Viterra Terminal is non-functional;
• Perform the work outside of the grain handling period of April to August.

Existing infrastructure

• Installation of seismographs on the infrastructures to be protected in order to comply with the thresholds to be respected. Continuous action will be taken and if an overrun occurs, the work will have to be stopped immediately and the contractor will have to propose an alternative method, which will have to be approved before the work resumes;
• Weekly survey of the movements of all temporary railway retaining walls.

Rail transport

• Maintaining at least one railway track in operation for the duration of the work;
• Completion of weekend block work;
• Close coordination and communications with the port's rail operations management team.

Soundscape

• Limit work at night (8 p.m. to 7 a.m.), including the delivery of equipment, to that necessary to maintain rail transportation;
• Require dump trucks to be equipped with shock absorbers to reduce popping noise;
• Implement dump truck traffic routes with turning loops, so as to avoid reversing traffic;
• Require mobile equipment to be equipped with broadband (white noise) back-up alarms, subject to compliance with safety standards;
• Take the necessary precautions to minimize the general noise level, by ensuring optimal operating and maintenance conditions of the equipment used, including maintaining the exhaust system of all vehicles or equipment in good condition;
• Comply with municipal policies for off-site trucking of work, using only authorized routes;
• Consider the possibility of delivering certain materials by railcar to limit trucking;
• Plan the phasing of the work to avoid concentrating noisy activities near the sensitive area (homes along the Notre-Dame Street East bike path, between Valois and Sicard streets);
• Implement a noise management program and monitor sound levels during the work, including occasional monitoring of the soundscape at the start of new phases or at the peak of the work (L10% measured over 30 minutes), at the edge of the noise-sensitive zone;
• Inform residents preventively of potentially noisy work periods (e.g., pile driving) and at night;
• Implement the MPA's process for collecting and handling noise complaints.

The authorities are satisfied that that the carrying out of the project is not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

Therefore, the authorities may carry out the project, exercise any power, perform any duty or function, or provide financial assistance to enable the project to be carried out in whole or in part.