Conseil régional de l’environnement et du développement durable de l’Outaouais (CREDDO) and the Ottawa Valley chapter of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness society (CPAWS-OV) to begin plans for a 115,000-hectare protected area in the Noire and Coulonge Rivers’ watershed.

The planning phase will be carried out by a collection of experts and will study the impacts of the protected area.

“Proper planning of protected areas is essential for maintaining the rich local biodiversity, but it must also be done in collaboration with local stakeholders to contribute to a development that is sustainable for the region,” said Jérôme Dupras, professor at the Université du Québec en Outaouais and one of the researchers conducting the impact assessment.

Pontiac Liberal MP Will Amos said the scope of the study is reassuring.

“I am glad that the impact-assessment study will ensure that all points of view are incorporated in the planning process, including those of the Algonquin Nation, the forestry sector, the tourism sector, and our municipalities,” Amos said in a press release.

Not only will this help to protect a large chunk of land, but the federal government also claims that it will help boost the local economy by promoting recreation and tourism in the area.

This is a significant chunk of land and helps push the Outaouais towards the goal of both the province and federal government of protecting 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas by 2020.

In Quebec, that number sits below the target at 10.7 per cent, while the Outaouais in particular only has 6.6 per cent protected land.

However, the 115,000-hectare space planned by CREDDO and CPAWS-OV will bring that number in the Outaouais from 6.6 per cent to 9.99 per cent.

“The Outaouais is entitled to its 17% of preserved lands,” said Geneviève Le Blanc, Conservation Director at CPAWS-OV. “Protected areas must represent the diversity of Quebec’s ecosystems, and several valuable natural environments are found in our region, including species at risk habitats and old-growth forests.”

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