Nobody claims that a highway is good for the environment, but it seems to me the NCC is being unfairly criticized here.
As I understand it, the Meech Creek valley (the edge of which is now being cut and bulldozed by the MTQ) was expropriated from farmers by the Quebec government in the 1970s with the intention of building a zoo. In the 1990s NCC acquired the land but a condition of that acquisition was the pre-existing highway right-of-way.
The cards that GuideGatineau has begun distributing to promote the website are considered to be highly environmentally responsible due to the fact that the paper used is 100% recycled and is produced using energy from biofuels plus the ink is vegetable based.