As a Metric Conversion Clerk for the regional county municipality (known by its French initials MRC) of Argenteuil, Julie Durocher plays a key role in reforming the Quebec cadastral system. The objective of this 15 year old provincial program is to set up a computerized cadastral survey system that will provide a reliable picture of the way Quebec is divided up into "parcels" of land for taxation purposes.


"My work involves taking each of the 30,000 files for the MRC of Argenteuil and converting the data from the imperial system to the metric system," explains Julie, 21. Although her job differs somewhat from those performed by her co-workers - such as estimating construction costs or evaluating buildings - it is just as essential to the economy. "This operation is part of the cadastral reform. It will mean we can standardize all the files," says Julie.

The cadastral survey assigns a parcel identification number to each property and determines the exact measurements and area of the lot. Julie corrects errors that could prove quite costly for anyone who plans to build, renovate, or sell a property. The number is used to register the rights to a property. Of course, municipalities also use the number to collect taxes! Once the system has been revamped, the cadastral survey will be complete, computerized, and updated on a regular basis.

In the course of a day's work, Julie may transfer about 40 files for occupied lots, or up to 200 vacant lots. It's generally a two-step process. For an occupied lot, she first copies all of the data about each building into a new file - called a cadastral parcel data set - then redraws the sketch of the building onto a divider sheet.

"All of the basic data, such as address, value, and area, is transferred and converted directly by a software program. What I do is create a new file for each property and insert the converted data," Julie explains. "Then, using the cadastral parcel data set and the parcel identification number, I locate each building and enter further information, such as the building address."

Julie also adds other pertinent details, such as whether the parcel of land is flat, sloping, higher, or lower than surrounding lots. For example, if there is a hairdressing salon in a building, she would indicate the area of the business on the map and insert a special form called a market-value form, which notes that fact.

"In addition to my work as a Metric Conversion Clerk, I update files when there's been a real estate transaction or change of address. Eventually, I may also inspect the buildings and perform other related tasks."