120/25-kV substation in Val‑des‑Monts and 120-kV supply line
Concrete support for community development
Hydro‑Québec uses its projects as an opportunity to participate in the development of host communities. Accordingly, it grants funds to eligible organizations through the Hydro‑Québec Integrated Enhancement Program. The amount granted is based on the length of the lines and the area of the substations concerned, and it is to be used for initiatives that improve the quality of life in the host communities. Meetings on this topic generally take place once government approvals have been received and the fieldwork has begun.
The substation supply line will be supported by guyed steel lattice towers. In some areas, four-legged steel lattice towers will be used for angle and dead-end towers.
Because guyed towers are relatively light, they need to be stabilized by anchor cables, called “guy wires,” which increase the tower’s mechanical strength. The guy wires are installed inside the right-of-way and therefore do not affect the clearing width required. The width of the right-of-way depends mainly on the voltage of the line and the average height that nearby trees are expected to reach at maturity.
The height and number of towers will be determined during the detailed engineering stage according to the terrain and the distance between towers. However, we already know that their average height will be 45 m and the new right-of-way will be about 60 m wide.
The substation will be located on Chemin de la Savane in Val‑des‑Monts. The fenced area of the new substation will cover approximately 7,600 m2 (0.76 ha), to which a drainage ditch will be added.
This location is near load centers, which will allow us to build shorter distribution lines and a shorter 120-kV supply line, while also optimizing how we deliver service to customers.
The proposed location of the new substation on Chemin de la Savane was strategically selected based on several criteria. It offers the following main advantages.
It reduces the length of 25-kV lines (electric wires on wooden poles): The proposed property is closer to the customers who will be supplied by the line. The new substation will therefore allow us to build a more reliable system, with less recurrent power outages, for a larger number of customers.
It limits environmental impacts: The proposed location will allow us to reduce the length of the future 120-kV transmission line (supported by steel towers) that will supply the substation.
The terrain of the property was also considered (flat, stable with good bearing capacity), along with the fact that it is located far from homes and allows us to avoid wetlands, rivers and streams, tapped sugar bushes and commercial crops.
Hydro‑Québec conducts specific noise level studies for every new major line or substation project. Generally speaking, we ensure that noise from the facilities will not be a nuisance to the neighboring population.
All noise emissions will comply with municipal standards, as well as those of the Ministère de l’Environnement, de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques, de la Faune et des Parcs and Hydro‑Québec.
Over the past 40 years, many scientific studies of electric and magnetic fields have been carried out. Based on this body of scientific literature, scientists inarguably conclude that the extremely low frequencies of electric and magnetic fields generated by power line corridors are not dangerous to human health. These fields are strongest near the source and drop off quickly with distance.
The strength of an electric field can be substantially reduced by anything that acts as a barrier, such as trees, fences and buildings.
The magnetic fields measured under the conductors along the edge of the power line right-of-way or at the nearest homes are much too weak to have any effect on the human body.
At most electrical substations, the magnetic field measured at the fence does not exceed the ambient level. The equipment installed within the perimeter of a substation contribute very little to the magnetic field measured outside it.
To learn more, we invite you to read the following:
Once the work is finished, Hydro‑Québec restores the roads it has used to their original condition. For example, the contractor in charge of the work may have to level the ground and fill ruts and excavations using materials other than the topsoil stripped from the site.
Throughout the work, the contractor must also ensure that the roadways it uses are maintained and kept clean and that it takes the necessary measures to avoid hindering other traffic. In addition, the contractor must take measures to protect paved or concreted roadways during operation of its tracked vehicles. Finally, the contractor is responsible for minimizing airborne dust generated by the transportation of its material by misting water on dirt roads.
The project is eligible for the Integrated Enhancement Program (IEP). The IEP is a voluntary program run by Hydro‑Québec that aims to improve quality of life in the communities that host our new substations and lines.
Through the program, Hydro‑Québec grants eligible organizations funding to enable them to carry out initiatives in which local residents have had a say.
Hydro‑Québec is aware of the growing demand for electricity in the Val‑des‑Monts area and still plans to build a 120/25‑kV transformer substation.
Since early 2022, Hydro‑Québec has been analyzing the best ways to optimize the entire transmission and distribution system in the Outaouais region, including a substation project in Val‑des‑Monts.
The previously proposed project will therefore be re‑evaluated based on this system optimization exercise.
Hydro‑Québec would like to remind its customers and municipal partners that the company is committed to improving the power system’s reliability throughout the Outaouais region, including the Val‑de‑Monts area.
Hydro‑Québec does regular tests to understand the cause of outages and determine the necessary solutions.
Several steps have been taken to improve the reliability of the power grid, irrespective of upcoming projects.
