After a nearly 10-year standoff, Quebec has just ordered naturist club Adam and Eve to stop illegal work in wetlands and restore areas that have been devastated since 2014.
Posted at 5:13pm
The naturist association has carried out numerous works in wetlands in recent years without first having obtained the necessary permits under the Environmental Quality Act (LQE).
The company did extensive excavation work, built a 2-mile (3.2 km) road, dug drainage ditches, partially backfilled a pond, and built illegal campgrounds in wetlands.
The Ministry of Environment, Combating Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks has issued an ordinance under the EQA, obliging the Club naturiste Adam et Ève ltée to stop “any work or intervention in wetlands” and to proceed with the restoration of the devastated environment.
This order follows an inspection carried out last November which found that additional work had been carried out in wetlands without authorization from the Department.
“In view of the affected areas in the vicinity and the company’s lack of cooperation, the appropriate legal remedy at this stage is Order No. 716 imposed under Section 114 of the proficiency test,” the ministry said in a press release published on Friday.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
The nudist club Adam and Eve
The naturist club, owned by Gilles Chantal for almost 50 years, has been piling up violations of the Environmental Quality Act for years.
Fines totaling $65,000
Despite issuing a notice of non-compliance and being fined US$5,000, the company failed to comply with the Ministère de l’Environnement’s requests for corrective action. Illegal work in particular continued on numerous occasions in 2022.
In July 2022, the company was also ordered by the Superior Court of Quebec to pay fines totaling $60,000 for EQA violations. The ministry also notes that another criminal investigation is ongoing into the case.
On June 21, 2022, a first order was issued to the naturist association to stop all illegal work in wetlands for a period of 90 days. The company ignored the order and carried out more illegal work in the following months, the ministry said.
Naturist club Adam and Eve was informed on January 19 that a new regulation would be issued and its owner then had 15 days to submit comments to the ministry. The company did not respond.
La Presse tried to reach Gilles Chantal, the owner of the campsite, so he could give his version of the facts. “I don’t have a word to say, I don’t know you. I don’t see you on the phone. Call my lawyer,” said a man who refused to identify himself.
In 2017, in an interview with the daily newspaper Le Nouvelliste, the founder of the Quebec Federation of Naturism, Michel Vaïs, stated that the naturist club was more of a swingers club than a naturist club.
A naturist center is not an excuse to offer sexual exchange. What I understand from their advertising is that it is a swingers campground and not a naturist campground. Their practices differ greatly from those of the Federation.
Michel Vaïs, founder of the Quebec Federation of Naturism
In the summer of 2017, a triangular relationship is said to have gone wrong at the campsite, in which three people lost their lives. Suzanne Gareau, 50, and Rodrigue Tremblay, 77, were reportedly killed by Denys Carpentier, 76. The body of the alleged killer was found next to the two victims. A revolver-like weapon was found at the scene by the Sûreté du Québec.
According to Radio-Canada, Ms. Gareau had just moved in with Mr. Tremblay. According to testimonies from residents of the campsite, alleged killer Denys Carpentier was known for his jealous behavior.