Restoration of the Meder marsh

Restoring a wetland to promote biodiversity and improve resilience to climate change

The Meder marsh is located near the town of Coaticook in the Eastern Townships.

This wetland needed to be restored to conserve its biodiversity and contribute to global climate regulation.

The work involved reconnecting the marsh to the Ruisseau de la Meder by means of a weir to maintain a stable water level throughout the year.

Our experts had to correct the damaged water retention dike, while ensuring the sustainability of the area’s flora and fauna habitats.

CONTEXT & ISSUES

Among other things, our teams carried out a geotechnical study, drew up plans and specifications, assisted the MRC in obtaining permits and provided site supervision. Given that wetland restoration is a rapidly evolving field, it was important to remain open to the possibilities of engineering innovation and to study new ideas. As a result, we incorporated into our design a modification to the weir originally proposed, to facilitate fish passage downstream of the river system. This innovation could certainly be reused in other projects.