Lingering uncertainty around coping with flooding

The powerful rainstorms last weekend brought back nightmarish memories for hundreds of Gatineau residents.

In May, an estimated 2,200 residences were flooded and 1,400 people had to leave their homes.

The floods ravaged some areas more than others, particularly low-lying areas such as Pointe Gatineau and Masson-Angers in particular on the Hurtubise Boulevard, in Masson-Angers as well as on Cartier Street. Mayoral candidate Sylvie Goneau was one of the 100s of victims forced to tear down their homes.

Five months later, the land has dried out but the costs, both immediate and long-term, of the record flooding remain to be completely determined.

For the politicians, particularly the mayoral candidates, the flooding issue, both in terms of compensation and future protection, has been a difficult one to address because of uncertainty over what the province will be providing in terms of cash.

Sitting mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin and Goneau have been most vocal on the issue, talking about the need to “examine the infrastructure.”

But even they have couched their promises with more than a few generalities, not knowing yet how the province intends to address the issue. The biggest single remaining issue is a city request for an exemption under provincial legislation that forbids reconstruction in areas that are shown to be prone to further disastrous flooding in the next 20 years.

Those areas that may be flooded in a recurrence area of 20 years are considered “high-velocity” zones.

“It is not possible to build a new building or to rebuild a demolished building in the … high-velocity zones, according to the protection policy environment quality act adopted by the government of Quebec,” says Gatineau spokeswoman Hélène Lachance.

The act’s provisions are included in the city’s zoning bylaws.

However, at the beginning of October, Gatineau requested an exemption from the province to avoid the demolition of flooded properties and allow reconstruction. The exemptions can be granted to avoid depopulation of entire neighbourhoods.

“We are in the process of waiting to hear back,” says Pedneaud-Jobin. The main targeted areas are in the historic Pointe- Gatineau and Lac-Beauchamp districts. The city is expected to know later this month whether it get the exemption. That decision will affect a number of issues, ranging from reconstruction to compensation.

In the areas most affected, scores of people have not yet been able to return home. More than 90 families, a total of 184 people, are still hosted by the Canadian Red Cross in Gatineau.

“We will be there to support them for as long as they need,” says Red Cross spokesman Carl Boisvert.

The floods are costly to residents, as well as the municipality.

As of the beginning of September, the city had spent more than $4 million in flood-related expenditures. A large part of the money was allocated to short-term repairs and necessary aids to minimize future flooding damage.

The province of Quebec could cover just over 50 per cent of Gatineau’s expenses, which would represent more than $2 million, Gatineau fire director André Bonneau said in September.

It is not possible to build a new building or to rebuild a demolished building in the … high-velocity zones.