Residents of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve are demanding the resignation of their district mayor for having spaced out waste collection every two weeks. According to them, the streets are now “littered with waste”. But what is the measurement for, anyway?
Published at 5:00 a.m.
What you need to know
- In 2022, a pilot project to space out household waste collection was implemented in two sectors of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve;
- Since mid-November, the measure has been extended to the entire district;
- Citizens have contested the measure since the start of the pilot project and are demanding the resignation of Mayor Pierre Lessard-Blais.
“In the context of the climate crisis and the accelerated overflow of our landfills, it is imperative to review the way we manage our waste. We are convinced that residents […] will be able to meet this challenge,” says the mayor of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve (MHM), Pierre Lessard-Blais.
In recent weeks, he found himself at the heart of a local controversy, his district having implemented waste collection every two weeks in November. The measure has been the subject of tests in several sectors since 2022, but has been extended to the entire district since mid-November.
The initiative is intended to be a way of “cutting at the source” to avoid congesting the sorting centers, already overloaded, warned the mayor of Montreal, Valérie Plante, in 2023. His administration wants to extend it to other districts soon.
At the National Institute of Scientific Research, associate professor Louise Hénault-Ethier, specialized in composting, supports the measure.
“Reducing the frequency of collection, as is done in several other cities in Quebec and around the world, reduces the number of trucks on the roads, saves money and helps unclog our sorting centers,” she says. .
The MHM district states in particular that in the Saint-Justin sector, where the measure has been in place for approximately three years, a reduction of 23% in the tonnage collected was observed. Over the same period, most other boroughs recorded a decrease of only 8% in this regard.
Streets “littered with waste”
However, this political discourse goes down very badly among some citizens. Around ten of them, members of Ligue 33, an organization that fights for a better quality of life in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, gathered to demonstrate in front of the district town hall on Monday evening.
“It’s a hygiene issue,” explains the organization’s spokesperson, André-Philippe Doré. We notice that it stinks, but also that vermin, foxes as well as mice and rats, are more present than before in the district. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY ANDRÉ-PHILIPPE DORÉ
Waste accumulates on certain sidewalks in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve.
These citizens are demanding the return of weekly collection, until the borough puts together a more “rational” waste reduction plan. Many residents violate collection times and leave their waste in the street, not wanting to keep it inside, explains Mr. Doré. Illegal dumping is even increasing in public trash cans or in front of the camps of homeless people.
-When collection is done every two weeks, litter increases, confirms Louise Hénault-Ethier. “But almost everywhere, history shows that things adjust quickly. There is a transition period which will mean that things will go better afterwards,” she notes.
Dump
The fact remains that some citizens suffer more from the collection every two weeks than others, recalls Mr. Doré.
“There are citizens who have a disabled child who wears adult diapers. They complain that their apartment stinks. Same thing for those who have had to have an ostomy, who have to change their soiled pouch,” he describes.
Pet owners are also adapting as best they can. One protester, Caroline Chagnon, complains about having to keep her two cats’ litter box indoors for a longer period of time. “I can’t imagine what it would be like if I had a child,” she comments.
Mme Chagnon struggles to understand that his district was chosen first for the spacing of the collection, considering that it was already experiencing health issues. “I have the impression that the mayor did not take this into consideration at all,” she denounces. Considering the socio-economic situation of the neighborhood, it was not an ideal place to pass a measure like that. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY ANDRÉ-PHILIPPE DORÉ
Waste accumulates on certain sidewalks in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve.
“I find that citizens are being used to serve an ideological agenda rather than being at their service,” comments another demonstrator, Alexandre Giasson.
Mr. Giasson fears that his property has lost value, given the health issues in the sector. “My neighborhood is downright disgusting,” he denounces. At the same price, why stay in a dump? I wouldn’t buy here if I had to do it again. »
Ligue 33 and Mr. Giasson are calling for the resignation of Mayor Pierre Lessard-Blais, in particular because of the spacing of collections, but also because they denounce his “lack of transparency”. Outside the district council, Ligue 33 would have tried to obtain a meeting with the elected official, without success.
“We have the impression that the borough administration is a brick wall,” laments Mr. Doré. Pierre Lessard-Blais is obviously not the worst despot, but he literally does not seem to listen to the population. »
Mr. Lessard-Blais says he is “aware that increasing the frequency of household waste collection leads to a change in our sorting habits and actions.
“We recognize that it requires a period of adaptation to adjust to the new collection method. The borough wants to support the population,” he assures, recalling that the Jour de la Terre organization and its borough offer field and telephone support, if necessary.
