SPECIAL FOCUS: COLD CLIMATES AND REMOTE LOCATIONS
Nunavik First Nation Community combats drainage challenges By Yves Durand, Andreanne Dumont and Isabelle Beaulac
W
hapmagoostui is a Cree First Nation community located at the mouth of the Great Whale River, as it flows into Hudson Bay in the province of Quebec. Their reserved land is attached to the Eeyou Istchee territorial government, but located in Nunavik territory, slightly north of the 55th parallel. The community shares this territory with their neighbouring Inuit community of Kuujjuarapik. Accessible by air and sea only, the two communities combined are home to approximately 1,800 people and are not connected to any of the southern road network. With a freezing index in Whapmagoostui of 2,800 degree below Celsius days, above zero-degree daily temperature averages occur only from June to October, and monthly precipitations are above 60 mm from June to November. The combination Construction of the stormwater detention chamber system. of these factors was critical to the projects and led to many challenges for the community and the teams working with them connected to an outlet piping to prop- faces and consequently increased mainon a major drainage project. erly evacuate the water. Flooded surfaces tenance costs. The same type of damage on both streets and private and public occurs in the summer as increased rainDRAINAGE PROBLEMS IN properties appeared after heavy rain- storm intensities are observed. WHAPMAGOOSTUI fall episodes in the summer (insufficient Finally, an increase in flash flooding Geographically speaking, the land of hydraulic capacity), and during the melt- and water accumulation episodes in the the Whapmagoostui Indigenous Nation ing season in the spring (frozen catch- scarcely wooded environment of Whapmade for quite a challenging project. ment points, outlets and granular base). magoostui, creates an additional probThe surface is flat, and with a road netFlooding had a direct impact on lem of sediment transport and settlement work of only approximately 6 km and human activities, and pedestrian and in the drainage system and in more sensimade of gravel, delivery had to be well vehicle movements were made difficult, tive parts of the natural environment. thought out and planned. if not impossible. Flooded areas appearSurface drainage infrastructure was ing in the school vicinity also repre- PLANNING A SOLUTION practically nonexistent on the territory, sented a health and safety hazard for Beginning in 2016 and working with apart from the presence of storm sewer children and the community. the help of the CIMA+ engineering pipes underneath two street segments. On top of improper infrastructure, team, the Cree Nation Government One of these storm sewer lines was con- the effects of climate change had wors- (CNG) and the Whapmagoostui First nected to an outfall pipe discharging ened the problems, with newly observed Nation (WFN) community represendirectly into the Great Whale River. drastic daily temperature changes as tatives developed a plan to resolve the For most surfaces within the perimeter spring approached and increased snow drainage and other infrastructure probof the community, runoff water was con- melt episodes in the shoulder seasons. lems facing the community. veyed through shallow roadside ditches These freeze-thaw cycles created potOne of the key objectives in drafting and a few culverts, with no catch basins holes and cracks in the gravel street sur- this plan was to find ways to increase the 42 | February 2022
Environmental Science & Engineering Magazine
