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Gatineau city council has urged the Quebec government to slow down the implementation of a new regime that could determine the fate of hundreds of riverfront properties along the Ottawa River.

Councillors adopted a resolution Tuesday calling on the province to wait until the Public Security ministry completes its post-flood evaluation of property damage before evicting homeowners from land considered likely to flood again in the next 20 years.

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The provincial government said last month it would refuse to allow homeowners to rebuild homes classified as more than 50-per-cent damaged by recent flood waters. (Or up to 65 per cent damage in exceptional circumstances.) These property owners would receive up to $200,000 compensation for the house and another $50,000 for the land, provided they relocate to areas not on a flood plain.

The province’s new rules — which have yet to be implemented — have produced much uncertainty and stress within many of the estimated 1,400 affected homes in the Gatineau area, not least because it’s unclear how provincial officials will determine the 50-per-cent threshold.