Re-oxygenate the Rivière Rouge

August 4, 2019August 9, 2022

Good news for the Red River !

Winter 2020 : thanks to the involvement of many people from MARE with several bodies and organizations (COBAVER-VS, City of Coteau-du-Lac, Vaudreuil-Soulanges MRC, Quebec Ministry of Transport), the pipe which connects the Soulanges canal to the southern part of the Red River had become functional again. The river received again, after decades, good quality water, which should make it possible to dilute the fertilizers polluting this river, at least in its southern portion.

The 2 videos which follow testify to the beauty of this stretch of river when the water circulates there. You could already see a large amount of fish there as well as a great blue heron that fished there regularly.

Spring 2020 : however, because the water has not been flowing properly for years in this pipe, its reopening seems to have been the cause of a land collapse. The purpose of the work that followed was to make the cycle path functional, without taking into account this portion of the river which hardly received any more water, again.

the MARE, at the moment, got involved again in this case.

July 2020 : following an agreement between the municipality of Coteau-du-Lac and the MRC, the valve is now open to 25 % of its capacity. If all goes well, she will be at 50 % from August. We can already see a nice improvement. The water became clear again near the mouth of the pipe and a great blue heron began to feed again..

August 2020 : the valve is now open to 50 %. The effect is spectacular and should have a rapid impact on the quality of the water in this sector and on the health of this ecosystem. !

We can observe the rebirth of part of the Red River. Well done to all the people who mobilized with the MARE over the past year to make this rebirth possible. !

Summer 2022 :

Residents living along this river for several decades had great news for us : the return of tadpoles in large numbers near the shores.

Unheard of for many decades at this location ! An ecosystem that seems to be coming back to life !!! And that, thanks to the involvement of MARE volunteers.

issues

The Red River originates in the farmlands of the Vaudreuil-Soulanges region. This tributary of the St. Lawrence River is highly contaminated by fertilizers. The high levels of phosphorus and nitrogen contribute to eutrophication of the river, This means that algae proliferate. Their decomposition results in a significant decrease of oxygen in the river, which directly affects the fauna and flora of this ecosystem. Click here to read the characterization study made by the VS-COBAVER.

Actions you MARE

The objective of the MARE : convince various levels of government to make operational again a valve that would add, the water of the Red River, Water quality from the Soulanges Canal to dilute the fertilizer in the water and so revive the Red River section located south of the canal.

The MARE also conducted a cleanup of the Red River. We have it, among others, drafted a comprehensive sofa!!!

There is still a lot to do

If we can get the southern portion of the Red River to help out with water from the Soulanges Canal, Other challenges will present themselves to us in this campaign : development of riparian strips among farmers and residents, development of an agriculture using less fertilizer, …