American stone selected for Quebec Citadelle restoration violates contract, experts say

The American stone the Canadian government wants to use torestoretheQuebec City Citadelle fortress could threaten the integrity of the centuries-old building, according to local engineers.

National Defence's decision to use American bluestone is now being criticized because tworeports have found thatchoice violates the technical requirements of the contract.

• Feds reject Quebec stone in favour of American to restore landmark Quebec City Citadelle

The fortress is made ofSillerysandstone, which is readily available at a quarry in Lvis, across the river from the Citadelle.

Martin Anctil, the engineer who operates that quarry, has been outspoken against the use of the bluestone. He commissioned the reports.

The first study was conducted byLaboratoired'expertisesdeQubec(LEQ), a consultant company specializing in the engineering of soil and building materials.

"The bluestone does not meet most of the technical requirements of the specifications," says the report, signed by Charles Tremblay, a geological engineer and the president of LEQ.

"Some of the stone's properties could have a significant impact on its performance and durability."

Anctilasked anotherQuebec laboratory, called EXP, to look into the file.

EXP geologist Alain Blanchette came to a similar conclusion, saying "the bluestone doesn't meet any of the technical criteria and is therefore classified as non-compliant."

Anctil was interviewed by Helen Mann on CBC'sAs It HappensMonday. You can listen to the interview here.

Replacing original material with another 'very dangerous'

The findings echocriticism of the project byFranois Dufaux, an architecture professor at Universit Laval in Quebec City.

"It's very dangerous to replace one building material with another. You create a chemical reaction that is really unpredictable," Dufaux told Radio-Canada earlier this week.

He said there have been cases where original material was replaced "and the walls exploded years later."

The restoration work will be conducted on the King's Bastion section of theCitadelle, built between 1820 and 1850.

At least two companies submitted proposals that included the use of Sillery sandstone, the one available in Quebec.

The company that will use American stone submitted the lowest bid for the contract, estimated at $16 million.

Dufaux says that bid was only "marginally" lower than the others. He questions the motivation behind overlooking the green sandstone.

"Who benefits from that decision?" he said.

File to be reviewed

The federal minister responsible for Quebec relations, Jean-Yves Duclos, said earlier this week, saying he'd speak to his National Defence colleague, Minister Harjit Sajjan.

In a statement sent to Radio-Canada, National Defence said the Pennsylvania bluestone "meets all the requirements of the contract."

However, Lt.-Col.Franois Lagac, commanding officer of Quebec real property operations unit, said he'd be reviewing the file on Radio-Canada'sPremire heureWednesday morning.

Quebec City MayorRgis Labeaumesaid he wanted Duclosto do more.

"He's got to do his job!" Labeaumesaid during a news conference Monday, adding that he had questions about the bidding process.

Based on a report by Radio-Canada's Maxime Corneau