Restoring the natural ecology in a Québec City landfill
Alongside Lake Saint-Charles, the City of Québec owns a 155-hectare area at the foot of Mont-Brillant, set to become a nature reserve. Within the property, a 1.8-hectare portion served as a disposal site for construction waste until 2012. Now, through support and funding by the Society for Ecological Restoration (SER) and Microsoft, Agiro has been restoring the ecological integrity of the site.
The Mont-Brillant area ranges from mature forests to wetlands, providing a variety of habitats for wildlife, and includes 5 km of hiking and off-road vehicle trails. Lake Saint-Charles is the reservoir for the Québec City water supply and the source of the Saint-Charles River, which crosses through the city. Revitalizing the former landfill site will provide benefits by improving the resilience and biodiversity of the land, enhancing its ecological functions, and promoting responsible stewardship among the community.
Revitalizing the land
Based in Québec City, Agiro focuses on protecting water and natural ecosystems in the Saint-Charles River watershed. This project offered the opportunity to rebalance the ecosystems of the site through new plantings of native trees and shrubs while taking measures to control and reduce invasive non-native species.
Agiro brought in fresh topsoil and mulch to regenerate the soil of the site and plotted out ten planting “islands” varying in shape and size to create diverse habitats for both plants and animals. Each island represents a different ecological stage, such as meadows, shrubland, and forests, with plants chosen to attract local wildlife and shelters for small mammals and snakes crafted from natural materials.
Meanwhile, in areas around the islands where the soil quality already allowed for direct new plantings, the Agiro team managed invasive plants through a combination of installing impermeable tarps, direct pulling and mowing, and planting more native species.
Promoting responsible stewardship
Community engagement is another facet of the project. Before commencing the soil restoration, Agiro held a “bioblitz” event in which wildlife experts, volunteers, and employees documented 245 plant and wildlife species in the area. The bioblitz data guided the prioritization of habitat construction and species to plant. At an event in September 2024, volunteers including Microsoft employees helped plant nearly 100 plants in a single day, out of more than 500 trees and shrubs planted to date. Activities like these, along with informational signs about the restoration project, help to raise local awareness of the site’s environmental importance.
This project was funded as part of SER’s Standards-based Restoration in Action program, which provides a foundation to reduce risks and improve outcomes in ecological restoration projects. The core principles include incorporating community participation and knowledge, mitigating the causes of degradation, increasing or improving biodiversity, and aiming for the greatest net gain in environmental benefits, human well-being, and social equity. By following SER’s program, the Mont-Brillant restoration project is better positioned to achieve long-term effectiveness and sustainability.