Northvolt site visited

A group from the Kahnawake Environment Protection Office (KEPO) got the chance to visit the site of the future Northvolt facility earlier this month, marking its first-ever visit there since construction began in the winter.

Wetlands had to be filled in and wooded areas had to be cut in preparation of the coming electric car battery plant in the Monteregie. That work happened without the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) being consulted, prompting the band council to launch a lawsuit against the Swedish-based company earlier this year.

“We still have significant concerns about the impact of the project on wildlife habitat and the Richelieu River,” said Patrick Ragaz, an environmental advisor to the MCK.

In an affidavit filed to Quebec Superior Court earlier this summer he warned the plant has the potential to cause “irreversible harm” to wildlife and biodiversity in the area. It’s home to species like the least bittern bird and spiny softshell turtle, whose habitats have since been destroyed.

The federal and provincial governments are also targeted in the ongoing litigation. Both failed in their duty to consult Kahnawake before approving the construction of the battery plant on their traditional land, the MCK is alleging in its lawsuit.

“Our position still remains the same, but maybe there’s room to have discussion,” said Council chief Ross Montour, who’s been involved in overseeing the legal challenge.

In attendance for the visit was himself and numerous staff from KEPO. Those from Northvolt’s North American branch, like CEO Paolo Cerruti, were also there. During the visit they shared updates regarding work that’s happened to date, what’s to come and various environmental mitigation measures the company has and will be taking.

“There was discussion around what would be done to protect remaining areas and to protect the habitat for turtles, and the areas where the least bittern had been noted,” Montour said.

Ragaz said KEPO is now in the process of studying the new information Northvolt provided them. The environmental protection office is also still debating what demands the MCK could ask of the company to make up for what happened without their consent.

“What that’ll look like in terms of mitigating, or compensating, or accommodating, that’s still something that’s being considered,” he said.

While there, his group also got the chance to tour the remaining wetlands surrounding the construction site, which Ragaz said could be irreversibly harmed by the work carried out already.

“Wetlands are often connected, both by surface water but also by groundwater, and so if you cut a wetland in half, that’s going to impact that whole wetland,” he said. “Even if you have wetlands that are little further afield, if they were connected by groundwater, that wetland may no longer get inputs of water from through groundwater and might dry up.”

He said there’s a shared intention for their group and Northvolt to remain in contact as work there eventually moves forward.

“There are other authorizations that they will require (from Quebec), so we continue to make the case that consultation is required,” Ragaz said, mentioning Northvolt’s plan for a battery recycling plant there too.

Construction at the site has stalled in the face of financial hardship at the company.

Just last week its parent company filed for bankruptcy protection amid a decline in the global demand for electric car batteries. Quebec economy minister Christine Fréchette has since assured the $7 billion project is still projected to go ahead as planned in spite of that.

The MCK’s lawsuit against the company is set to be resolved through case management hearings at Quebec Superior Court, which have yet to be held.

The Eastern Door sought an interview with the CEO of Northvolt’s North American branch for this article, but he declined the request.

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