Frederic Serre
The Advocate
The Union des producteurs agricoles in the Montérégie region is urging Hydro-Québec to go ahead and build a new 120-kilovolt substation and power line in the Cowansville and Sutton area, despite opposition from the Town of Sutton, which is calling for a 69-kilovolt substation and the installation of solar panels.
Jérémie Letellier, regional president of the Montérégie UPA federation, argues that switching to a 69-kilovolt network would harm agricultural and forest land, causing a greater loss of forest cover with the addition of between 30 and 45 kilometres of additional lines, which would have an impact on a larger pool of landowners and citizens.
“With a 69-kilovolt line, five electrical substations would have to be built to meet the region’s needs, meaning that much more agricultural and forest land would be sacrificed,” Letellier said. “Not to mention that this solution does not seem sustainable for the region. Whereas, the installation of pylons adapted for 120-kilovolt or 230-kilovolt wires requires only one electrical substation, avoids the addition of power lines in the long term and, thus, better meets regional needs.”
In April 2, Sutton’s town council passed a resolution calling on Hydro to build a scaled-down version, saying the infrastructure Hydro-Québec wishes to develop would unnecessarily exceed citizens’ electricity needs and that the installation of towers supporting a 120-kilovolt line would have an unfortunate impact on the landscape.
“While we understand regional considerations, we must look first and foremost at Sutton’s position,” said Mayor Robert Benoit. “We congratulate Hydro-Québec for all the efforts they have made to reduce the number of outages since 2023. However, the current project presented by Hydro-Québec is oversized in relation to Sutton’s projected needs, as outlined in our resolution.”
Benoit reiterated the importance of social acceptability for this large-scale project, urging Hydro-Québec, “even if they are sure of their choice, to demonstrate that it is the best collective choice. Let’s remember that this issue will have a major impact on our territory for the next 100 years.”
In a statement May 27, Letellier said “preserving the region’s landscape is an important issue, but it must not take precedence over preserving the agricultural zone, which represents only 2 per cent of Quebec’s territory. The choice of project must be made with a long-term vision, from the perspective of food sovereignty and regional development.”
Letellier brushed off Sutton’s solar panel proposal, saying it is not an option that the federation favours, “considering that their installation requires large areas of land, which would result in the loss of cultivated land, meadows, hayfields and forest areas, including maple groves.”
“That’s why our organization is requesting that the initial project to build a power station and install a 120-kilovolt power line be maintained,” he said.
The UPA Montérégie represents and 6,926 farms, which generate 30 per cent of Quebec’s agricultural gross domestic product and 25 per cent of agricultural jobs in Quebec.