Removals | “People are getting rid of everything”

Mattresses, refrigerators, tires and gas bottles: as the 1^is July, Montrealers who move throw everything and anything in the trash. A gesture that shocks garbage collectors, especially when more ecological solutions exist.

“People are getting rid of everything […] they don’t want to pay movers,” says Kévin Prévot, garbage collector at Enviro Connexions, which operates in Laval. He says his truck has already caught fire because of chemicals left on the street by citizens. He deplores having seen “mountains” of large bulky items during waste collections.

Simon Paré, a garbage collector in Montreal, says that people use “stratagems” to hide things in their trash, including tires or sharp objects. “It’s terrible,” says the man, who has already found gold, board games and even a working Nintendo Switch console in his truck. Mr. Paré explains that many people pass off their recycling as garbage.

The two men are of the same opinion: people throw away “anything”, especially during the moving season.

Donate to a thrift store

The same observation was made at the Renaissance Saint-Laurent thrift store. Marie-Claude Masson, communications and marketing director, deplores the fact that many people give away worthless objects, or even trash, to Renaissance, especially during moving periods. She says she has received tires, pet rats and half-full ketchup bottles as “donations.” However, Renaissance has to pay money to get rid of these items. “It’s becoming more manageable,” she says.

At the thrift store, moving season comes with an increase in the number of donations. The company does not only accept clothes, it is also possible to leave a host of different small objects there. “For two weeks, it’s been moving madness! », argues M^me Masson.

On site, we see that the store is busy. Customers are busy looking for gems in the thrift store aisles. Others are shopping for decorations for their new apartment.

Efforts in the City

The City of Montreal is preparing to collect objects, furniture and appliances left behind by people who are moving. During the first two weeks of July, municipal teams travel through neighborhoods to collect trash left by residents.

The moves at the beginning of the month are putting pressure on the City’s waste collection teams, according to Philippe Sabourin, spokesperson for the City of Montreal. He says citizens must use all available services to prevent streets from turning into “dumping grounds.” He gives the example of ecocenters, collections of large bulky items and compost.

After the first of the month, the City collects approximately 50,000 tons of various objects from the streets. Mr. Sabourin believes that the “worst nightmare” of the City’s teams is unsorted objects. “We don’t have time to sort things out,” he said.

Take a trip to the ecocenter

During the moving season, between the months of May and August, the recycling center at the Enviro Connexions landfill site, located in Terrebonne, observes a 300% increase in the volume of materials recovered.

At this centre, people are responsible for sorting their waste before dropping it off, otherwise they have to pay a fee. Anne-Marie Hallé, director of public affairs at Enviro Connexions, says people are usually disciplined and sort their waste well.

Centers of this type make it possible to “revalue” certain waste, which would normally have gone into the trash. Building materials are reused by the landfill, and compost is made with what is organic.

At the passage of The Press Friday, household appliances of all kinds were piled up in a shed. They will be recycled later. Anne-Marie Hallé points out that the warehouse is particularly full at this time of year. “There is volume at 1^is July,” she said.

She deplores that garbage collectors have to sort waste during collection, even though this is not in their mandate. People should sort their waste before putting it in the trash. “The right action must be taken at the base,” she said. She adds that it is a risk for garbage collectors to sort waste at source.