Canada's Alto, conservation authority sign MOU for high-speed rail development

Canada Crown Corp. Alto and the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) establishing a framework to support the development of Canada’s first high-speed rail network.

Alto is a planned passenger-rail service that would connect Toronto, Peterborough and Ottawa in Ontario with Montreal, Laval, Trois-Rivieres and Quebec City in Quebec. The MOU formalizes a partnership between the two organizations based on shared principles of environmental stewardship, scientific rigor and early engagement, Alto officials said in a press release. 

Under the agreement, Alto and TRCA will collaborate across several key areas, including planning and design review, modelling and data sharing, hazard risk management, climate resilience and adaptation, restoration and environmental offsetting, biodiversity and greenspace management, engagement and stewardship and property coordination.

“TRCA is working to ensure that this transformative federal infrastructure benefits from TRCA’s expertise in watershed science, natural hazard management, and environmental planning and stewardship," said John MacKenzie, CEO of TRCA. "Through this collaboration, TRCA will work closely with Alto and its agency and municipal partners to help identify opportunities to reduce negative environmental impacts, address natural hazards, strengthen resilience and support sustainable project outcomes as planning for the project moves forward.”