The mayoress of Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac, Mrs Sonia Paulus, announced that the City does not intend to leave without consequence the illegal actions committed by the companies Groupe L’Héritage inc and Gestion Dumoulin Lespérance inc., Both linked to Mr. Benoît Dumoulin and to GBD. All people and businesses that have participated in illegal deforestation and unauthorized backfilling or excavation work will also be targeted.
As soon as possible, employees of the City administration will initiate the process of repairing and issuing the penal sanctions provided for in the regulations in force. The members of the municipal council will also be convened to meeting to follow up the process initiated and to examine various legal, penal, or regulatory options.
Despite the interventions of the police, the general management, and the Planning Department, despite several formal notices and two orders to cease work, GBD and its subcontractors continued, at full speed, the felling of trees without a permit on December 23. The obvious goal of this deplorable maneuver was to create an effect of surprise by taking advantage of the Christmas holidays and government restrictions linked to the pandemic to place all stakeholders in front of the fait accompli of the destruction, in just a few hours, of a wooded area and a wetland. In fact, the presence of wetlands is of great concern to the City, which has requested the rapid intervention of the Ministry of the Environment and the Fight against Climate Change.
It is in 2008, under the administration of Mayor Paulus, that the City of Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac protected the hemlock forest, a dense forest cover representing 1.5 million square feet. along the Boulevard des Promenades.
“The recent actions taken by the promoter and his subcontractors, during a weekend and two days before Christmas when the City is closed, are damaging to the environment and show a flagrant lack of respect for the laws in force. These illegal actions cannot remain without consequences given their seriousness. We will examine the means at our disposal in the laws that govern municipalities and on the penal level so that the City obtains compensation, and that this promoter is more respectful of regulations and laws. ” said Sonia Paulus, Mayor of Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac.
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