Last week’s reveal of the Québec government’s Water Strategy, has been followed by the announcement of $1.8 billion in Green Infrastructure spending through the federal government’s Investing in Canada program.
Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and Member of Parliament for Québec City, and André Fortin, Québec’s Minister of Transport, Sustainable Mobility and Transport Electrification, and Member of the National Assembly for Pontiac, announced the signing of a bilateral agreement that will provide more than $7.5 billion in federal funding over the next decade for a variety of infrastructure projects in Québec. These projects will be cost-shared with the Québec government, municipalities and other partners
“Long-term investments in infrastructure connect citizens, create good jobs for the middle class, and support our economy. This new agreement with Québec will provide long-term predictable funding to meet the needs of all Québeckers,” said Duclos. “We will continue to work with our provincial, municipal and Indigenous partners to make strategic investments in Québec, which will help build inclusive resilient communities where everyone has the opportunity to succeed.”
Green Infrastructure priorities include:
- Increased structural capacity and/or increased natural capacity to adapt to climate change impacts, natural disasters, and extreme weather events;
- Asset maintenance and upgrading of wastewater treatment and collection infrastructure;
- Asset maintenance and upgrading of drinking water treatment and distribution infrastructure; and
- Increased capacity to reduce or eliminate pollutants from soil and/or the atmosphere.
The federal investment will be distributed as follows: $5.2 billion in public transit projects, $1.8 billion in green infrastructure projects, $257 million in community, cultural and recreational infrastructure projects, and $288.5 million in rural and northern community infrastructure projects.
“Over the next decade, public investment in infrastructure will reach historic levels in Québec,” said Fortin. “These investments will help improve the quality of life for all Québeckers, give them more quality time by improving mobility and raise their standard of living thanks to a strong sustainable economy in all regions of Québec.”
These federal funds are in addition to $100.4 billion the Province of Québec will invest through the 2018–2028 Québec Infrastructure Plan (QIP) announced in the Québec Economic Plan of March 2018.
