Northvolt received a non-compliance notice after 'accidentally clearing wetland' area

The proposed site for Northvolt's battery manufacturing and recycling plant is located on 171 hectares of land in Saint-Basile-le-Grand and McMasterville. (Scott Prouse/CTV News)

The battery company Northvolt claims that it received a notice of non-compliance from the Quebec Ministry of the Environment, the Fight against Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks on Wednesday as a result of "accidental undergrowth clearance."

The daily newspaper La Presse revealed on Thursday morning that the ministry sent Northvolt a notice of non-compliance on Wednesday for having "cleared the entire area" of a marsh that was "to be conserved."

In a news release, the company, which is currently carrying out preparatory work ahead of the construction of its future battery cell plant in Saint-Basile-le-Grand, Montérégie, confirmed that it had received the notice from the ministry after "accidentally clearing a wetland covering an area of 1,044 square metres located on the Saint-Basile-le-Grand portion of the land that is to house Northvolt Six."

"Specifically, two mature ash trees were cut down in a wetland area excluded from the work zone. This wetland is disconnected from the water system and its ecological functions have been assessed as 'low to medium,'" the Swedish company said in its statement.

According to Northvolt, it was the environmental consultancy it hired to monitor the felling work that noticed the error on Feb. 16. The felling work is carried out in partnership with the Centre de valorisation du bois urbain.

As a result of the situation, Northvolt says it has already proposed corrective measures to the Environment Ministry, namely the planting of seven alternate-leaf dogwoods, seven Hart dogwoods and seven yellow willows at the end of the site preparation work. The planting should be completed this spring, the company said.

"Northvolt is committed to doing the right thing and complying with environmental regulations. It will continue to work to make its processes ever more efficient and to learn from this situation," the company said in its statement.

According to 'La Presse', no fine was imposed on Northvolt, but in its notice of non-compliance, the Environment Ministry warned that it reserves the right to take administrative or legal action.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on March 28, 2024.