The Québec Port Authority (QPA) makes various documents related to projects carried out on port territory available to interested parties.
First, a project notification will be posted on the QPA website with the expected dates of each step of the consultation process. This will let interested parties know that a project will be assessed as part of the Environmental Citizen Participation Process (ECPP).
Next, a preliminary version of the evaluation of environmental effects (EEE) will be made public on the QPA website. Depending on the ECPP level defined for a project, a corresponding public participation period will be allotted so that interested parties can familiarize themselves with the EEE and provide their input.
The QPA’s ECPP involves three levels of assessment, which are defined as follows:
ECPP – level 1, where:
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The potential impacts on the environment and the community, before mitigation measures, are minor and limited.
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The impacts are restricted to the work zone.
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The project is small-scale and of low complexity.
ECPP – level 2, where:
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The potential impacts on the environment and the community, before mitigation measures, are moderate.
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The impacts, before mitigation measures, could be felt in areas in the immediate vicinity of QPA territory.
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The project is medium-scale and of medium complexity.
ECPP – level 3, where:
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The potential impacts on the environment and the community, before mitigation measures, could be significant.
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The impacts, before mitigation measures, could be felt in areas beyond the immediate vicinity of QPA territory.
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The project is large-scale and of high complexity.
Economic impacts are taken into consideration when defining and analyzing projects, as well as during the preparation and analysis of the EEE.
Once the preliminary EEE is online, the comment period will begin. The comment period is shown in the following table:
| ECPP level | Comment period (days) |
|---|---|
| 1 | 10 |
| 2 | 30 |
| 3 | 45 |
Throughout this period, interested parties will be able to submit their comments through the different channels determined for the three ECPP levels, as shown in the following table:
| ECPP level | Types of comments |
|---|---|
| 1 | Written online (submission or comments section) |
| 2 | Written online (submission or comments section) Verbal during public participation session(s) |
| 3 | Written online (submission, presented or not during public consultations) Verbal during public consultations |
With the ECPP, the QPA makes it mandatory for the project proponent to consider the comments received, and acceptable justification must be given for any comments not taken into consideration.
It is important to keep in mind that any input provided must respect the ECPP’s terms of use. As a result, participants must provide the requested information in the required fields on the project page in order to make comments in the designated section or upload documents (submissions or reports).
The submissions and reports will be uploaded and made available on the QPA website once the comment period has ended.
Once a decision is made about an assessed project, the QPA will post the decision on its website.
An updated EEE may also be posted on the QPA website if changes are made to the preliminary EEE.