OUTAOUAIS
Discover the PRMHH!
The Government of Quebec passed the Loi concernant la conservation des milieux humides et hydriques in 2017. Under this law, regional county municipalities (MRCs) are responsible for developing Regional wetlands and water bodies plans (PRMHH) and integrating their conservation into these plans. The PRMHH will be a tool for planning the development of the territory and must be tabled by June 2023 by the 101 MRCs or MRC Cities in Quebec. Once the Ministère de l'Environnement et de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques (MELCC) has approved the MRC's PRMHH, the MRC will have to ensure that its land use and development plan (SAD) respects it.
The development of a regional plan follows 5 mandatory steps before final filing in June 2023:
A concerted approach in the Outaouais
In the Outaouais, the MRC des Collines-de-l’Outaouais, Papineau, Pontiac and La Vallée-de-la-Gatineau have chosen to work together in a concerted approach to develop their respective PRMHH. The CREDDO is proud to have been mandated as the organization responsible for this concerted effort.
Portraits of the Outaouais
Consult the portraits of the rural and semi-rural region of the Outaouais, and the map atlases for each of the four MRCs (only available in French).
PDFs to download below
Diagnosis of the Outaouais
(only available in French, except the video)
PDFs to download below
Why protect wetlands and water bodies?
The Outaouais' natural environments and resources are of utmost importance for the region's activities and overall health. Forests, lakes and mighty rivers promote, among other things, vacationing, outdoor recreation and the forest industry in the north of the region. In the south, the plains, fertile soils and calmer rivers allow for agricultural production, urbanization and industrial development. All of this is closely related to water bodies (lakes and rivers) and wetlands (peat bogs, marshes, swamps).
In addition to providing drinking water, wetlands and water bodies provide a range of ecosystem services to people. These services ultimately generate economic wealth or reduce public and private expenditures:
Capturing greenhouse gases
Water purification
Biodiversity and ecosystem balance
Potential for hunting and fishing recreation
Balance in the natural distribution of water according to periods of drought and flooding
Soil materials that limit or mitigate flooding
To benefit from these services, to ensure the sustainability of the region's development and to increase our resilience in the face of climate change, it is important to understand and conserve wetlands and water environments.
What are we aiming for?
1. Promote the achievement of the no net loss principle
2. Ensure consistent watershed management
3. Addressing climate change issues
How does it work?
An entire team is at work on the development of the MRCs' PRMHHs. 👇
Citizen Space
We already share a gorgeous territory. Now, let’s share a vision.
Survey
Discover the key issues by MRC and the main orientations that emerged from your responses at our last survey.
Regional analysis of wetlands
Find out about the criteria used in our analysis.
Click on the visuals to enlarge
Medias
Webinars
Diagnosis: Methodology, criteria and results - March 2022 (PDF slides)
Issues and orientations - July 2021 (recorded video)
Issues and orientations - July 2021 (PDF slides)
Press releases
We are here for you
Do you have questions, comments, concerns or ideas to share with us? Visit Frequently Asked Questions section or write to us!
