Phase 2A of the Environmental Assessment Study of Interprovincial Crossings:

May 26, 2010 · Filed Under Blog, Community

Public Consultations Completed; Final Documents Released

CANADA’S CAPITAL REGION—As the completion of Phase 2A of the Interprovincial Crossings Environmental Assessment approaches, Co-Entreprise AECOM-Delcan announced today that it has posted on the Study’s website, final versions of the key reports it was commissioned to develop. The reports include:

• The Study Design, which outlines the process and methodology that will be used in the next and final phase of the environmental assessment, Phase 2B, to select an interprovincial bridge crossing in the Region’s east end; and

• The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act Scoping Report, which provides details on the project and scope of assessment for Phase 2B.

Also posted was a Consultation Summary Report outlining how public consultation at Phase 2A helped inform and shape the two reports. Several opportunities were built-in at Phase 2A to allow communities, members of the public and stakeholders to provide their input into the development of the Study Design and Scoping report. Consultation activities began in December 2009 and comments were accepted up until April 16, 2010. Opportunities to provide comment included:

• Two public sessions held in Ottawa on March 30 and in Gatineau on March 31 (total attendance was over 250)

• Three meetings with the Public Consultation Group (comprised of over 125 members representing 93 organizations with a regional interest in the Study)

• One online consultation exercise (completed by 159 respondents from Ottawa and Gatineau)

• Three meetings with First Nations leaders and representatives

• Ongoing opportunities via comment sheets, mail, fax, email and other means (resulting in hundreds of submissions).

In an additional effort to be proactive and innovative, the Consultant Team also held the following meetings with leaders and residents of communities that stand to be directly or indirectly impacted by a future crossing:

• Six meetings with Community Consultation Groups (CCG), representing communities located within or adjacent to one of the three corridors under consideration;

• Two meetings for Ottawa`s east-end and Lowertown communities, to discuss concerns raised by community leaders regarding truck traffic and the potential impact on commuting times, quality of life, health and safety, etc.

Phase 2A will be completed at the end of June 2010. All comments received from the public and stakeholders have been given full consideration. As part of the Consultation Program’s reporting efforts, the Consultant Team will present their findings and the Final Study Design and Scoping Report at the following three public events:

• June 2: City of Ottawa Transportation Committee

• June 8: Ville de Gatineau Comité plenier

• June 29: NCC Board of Directors Meeting.

Details of the three meetings will be posted on the websites of the meeting hosts.

Phase 2B is anticipated to begin at the end of 2010. The approvals process for the EA Study is expected to extend until the end of 2013.

The Study is funded by the National Capital Commission (NCC), the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) and the ministère des Transports du Québec (MTQ), and guided by a Study Team consisting of the funding partners and the cities of Ottawa and Gatineau. The three corridors under consideration are those that obtained the highest ranking during Phase 1 of the Study: Kettle Island (Corridor 5); Lower Duck Island (Corridor 6); and Gatineau Airport/McLaurin Bay (Corridor 7).

For more information, please visit the Study website at www.ncrcrossings.ca.

Tags: Environmental Assessment Study, National Capital Commission, NCC