In the 1930s, the agricultural landscape of the territory that now constitutes the Beauharnois-Salaberry RCM was forever altered. A massive canal construction was created between Lake Saint-François and Lake Saint-Louis. The Beauharnois Canal was built to power the Beauharnois hydroelectric generating station and subsequently, to serve as a passage on the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Back then, the construction site affected nearly 50 kilometres of river bank, leaving the ground marked with earth mounds and basins, barren landscapes and disrupted wildlife and vegetation. Plants and wildlife returned progressively with time. Wildlife habitats were built for the waterfowl visiting the park during migration. The park remains today an important bird conservation area.

Established in 1996, Beauharnois-Salaberry Regional Park was designed to provide access to the St. Lawrence River. The park accommodates several outdoors activities, such as fishing, boating and bird watching, and also offers extensive cycling and hiking trails.

Given the vast size of the park, it is easier to preserve priority natural environments. The park includes three zones known for their usefulness to bird conservation and protects the chorus frog’s habitat, whose reproduction sites are dispersed on the south shore of the canal, from Saint-Stanislas-de-Kostka to Beauharnois. Spreading out over this long, narrow territory is no mean feat for the tree frog, which can’t travel long distances. Habitat protection is essential to maintain the local population of chorus frogs. Come and visit these magnificent landscapes, home to the chorus frog !