Maintenance of ditches

The main purpose of ditches is to collect and drain surface water and evacuate water found under asphalt. It is essential to keep them well maintained.

Ditches play an important role in protecting the environment. They help maintain biodiversity that allows fauna and flora to grow and flourish. They also protect banks from erosion and act as a natural filter.

Property owner’s responsibilities

• Openings must be regularly maintained.
• A properly sealed backwater valve must be installed on your indoor foundation drain to prevent water that has overflowed from the ditch from flooding your home.
• DO NOT place rock riprap or landscape the banks of your ditch.
• DO NOT completely re-profile ditches yourself—in other words, DO NOT completely remove vegetation from the bottom, sides or banks of ditches.
• The City has the expertise required to completely re-profile ditches as needed using specialized machinery.
• DO NOT fill your ditch with grass cuttings or piles of leaves as this may cause a blockage.

City's responsibilities

• The City may re-profile a ditch whenever required in order to improve water flow.
• The City must ensure that by-laws and information on the maintenance of ditches are available to property owners.

Ditch closure

Due to recent amendments made to the Regulation respecting the regulatory scheme applying to activities on the basis of their environmental impact of the Environment Quality Act, a certificate of authorization (CA) from the Ministère de l’Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs (MELCCFP) must be obtained in order to modify existing drainage structures, whether by adding a catch basin or a manhole, or closing off a ditch.

Property owners who wish to close off a ditch adjacent to their property must henceforth follow the steps outlined below.

To open a file

Property owners must:

1. Complete the Ditch Closing Request – Request for Pre-inspection section of the form available online (or a paper copy can be obtained from the Infrastructure Department).
2. Submit the form to the Infrastructure Department. Applications are processed between March 15 and October 1 (any application received outside of these dates will be processed the following year).
   
   • By email to infrastructures@ville.saint-lazare.qc.ca
   • In person at the Infrastructure Department during the regular hours of operation, by appointment only
3. Pay the invoice sent by the City’s Finance Department in the non-refundable amount of $85 to cover the cost of opening a file and the preliminary inspection by the site by the Infrastructure Department (generally within 30 days of receiving the application).

Upon reception of payment, the City will send the following to the property owner:

• Confirmation that he may hire a professional civil engineering firm to draw up the engineering plans for closure of the ditch
• All required technical documentation to submit to the firm requiring the City’s technical requirements for ditch closure

Engineering plans and certificate of authorization (MELCCFP)

Once the plans are ready, the property owner must:

• Submit the plans to the Infrastructure Department (by email or in person)
• Pay the invoice sent by the City’s Finance Department in the non-refundable amount of $110 for the analysis of the plans

Once the plans are approved, the City will send the following to the property owner:

• The written confirmation (copy of the municipal council resolution) required for the property owner to apply with the MELCCFP (the engineering firm hired by the property owner will guide the latter through the entire process).

Permit application

Once the property owner has received the certificate of authorization from the MELCC, he may:

• Request a permit from the City and pay the invoice sent by the City’s Financial Department in the amount of $835.

Description of fees

• A fee of $85 is required for site inspections to be completed by the City
• A fee of $750 is required for a deposit refundable upon completion of the two (2) City inspections:
  • First inspection – before backfilling: before backfilling can be authorized, the City Officer will carry out an inspection to ensure that the work done and material used are compliant (pipes, fittings, etc.).
  • Final inspection: the Officer will also carry out an inspection of the backfilling work to ensure that the technical requirements included in the plan are respected.

These two (2) amounts are refundable if the property owner chooses not to have the work done. If the work is completed, only the $750 deposit will be reimbursed following the two (2) inspections carried out by the City.

Request for inspection

The property owner must contact an Officer from the Infrastructure Department at least 24 hours before the desired inspection date.

Follow-up and compliance

If the work carried out is:

• Compliant: the deposit will be refunded
• Non-compliant: after a 3^rd inspection, the City reserves the right to complete the work required to return the functional ditch to its original state. In these circumstances, the deposit will not be refunded.

Payments can be made:

• Electronically
• In cash
• By debit
• By cheque

Technical Services
Municipal workshops
1875 Avenue Bédard
450-424-8000, ext. 235
infrastructures@ville.saint-lazare.qc.ca

Monday to Thursday: 7:30 a.m. to noon and 12:45 to 4 p.m.
Friday: 7:45 to 11:45 a.m.

Ditch reprofiling

Residents can contact Public Works for an analysis of a water draining issues by:

• Providing:
  • Their complete contact information
  • A brief description of the request
  • The specific location where service is required (address, intersection, streets)
• Completing an online request (a follow-up number is provided)
• Leaving a message at 450-424-8000, ext. 250

Outside of regular hours of operation (evenings and weekends) or on statutory holidays, if the request is urgent and cannot wait until the offices re-open, call 311.

Note that issues with water drainage in a ditch do not automatically require reprofiling. There may be other issues involved including a defective or broken culvert, etc.

Public Works
Municipal workshops
1875 Avenue Bédard
450-424-8000, ext. 250
infrastructures@ville.saint-lazare.qc.ca

Monday to Thursday: 7:30 a.m. to noon and 12:45 to 4 p.m.
Friday: 7:45 to 11:45 a.m. 

Residents can contact Public Works to have a culvert cleaned or unblocked by:

• By providing:
  • Their complete contact information
  • A brief description of the request
  • The specific location where service is required (address, intersection, streets)
• Completing online request (a follow-up number is provided)
• Leaving a message at 450-424-8000, ext. 250
• If the request is urgent and cannot wait until the offices re-open, call 311
  
  

Request a culvert permit (in French only)

Public Works
Municipal workshops
1875 Avenue Bédard
450-424-8000, ext. 250
infrastructures@ville.saint-lazare.qc.ca

Monday to Thursday: 7:30 a.m. to noon and 12:45 to 4 p.m.
Friday: 7:45 to 11:45 a.m. 

Residents can contact Public Works to have a catch basin cleaned or unblocked by:

• By providing:
  • Their complete contact information
  • A brief description of the request
  • The specific location where service is required (address, intersection, streets)
• Completing online request (a follow-up number is provided)
• Leaving a message at 450-424-8000, ext. 250
• If the request is urgent and cannot wait until the offices re-open, call 311

Public Works
Municipal workshops
1875 Avenue Bédard
450-424-8000, ext. 250
infrastructures@ville.saint-lazare.qc.ca

Monday to Thursday: 7:30 a.m. to noon and 12:45 to 4 p.m.
Friday: 7:45 to 11:45 a.m. 

Residents can contact Public Works to have a manhole cover replaced, repositioned or repaired by:

• By providing:
  • Their complete contact information
  • A brief description of the request
  • The specific location where service is required (address, intersection, streets)
• Completing online request (a follow-up number is provided)
• Leaving a message at 450-424-8000, ext. 250
• If the request is urgent and cannot wait until the offices re-open, call 311

Public Works
Municipal workshops
1875 Avenue Bédard
450-424-8000, ext. 250
infrastructures@ville.saint-lazare.qc.ca

Monday to Thursday: 7:30 a.m. to noon and 12:45 to 4 p.m.
Friday: 7:45 to 11:45 a.m. 

Residents can contact Public Works to have a valve cover replaced, repositioned or repaired by:

• By providing:
  • Their complete contact information
  • A brief description of the request
  • The specific location where service is required (address, intersection, streets)
• Completing online request (a follow-up number is provided)
• Leaving a message at 450-424-8000, ext. 250
• If the request is urgent and cannot wait until the offices re-open, call 311

Public Works
Municipal workshops
1875 Avenue Bédard
450-424-8000, ext. 250
infrastructures@ville.saint-lazare.qc.ca

Monday to Thursday: 7:30 a.m. to noon and 12:45 to 4 p.m.
Friday: 7:45 to 11:45 a.m.