The Plante administration on Tuesday defended the spacing of household waste collection – a collection every two weeks – as this measure is about to be applied in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve (MHM).
The East Montreal borough will eliminate half of its garbage collections by the end of next year. Goal: Increase the use of compost and recycling bins, which will continue to be picked up weekly.
“It’s a bold measure that takes elected officials, citizens and teams out of their comfort zone,” said Marie-Andrée Mauger, the elected official responsible for the environment within the municipal administration. She pointed out that the dumps used by Montreal are filling up quickly and that there is an urgent need to reduce the amount of garbage sent to the landfill each week.
“We see the limits of awareness, said the mayor of MHM, Pierre Lessard-Blais. We have to change our habits. The two elected officials spoke to the municipal council.
The official opposition at City Hall tried to convince the administration to continue picking up trash on a weekly basis during the hot season, from June to September, in order to limit odors and the presence of vermin. Valérie Plante’s team rejected the idea.
“Cleanliness is a matter of dignity,” said opposition politician Alba Zuniga Ramos, who represents a district of MHM. The ecological transition should not rhyme with dirt. »
“If there is such enthusiasm from the administration for such a project, I invite them to lead by example, to move forward and to set up the same project in their borough”, attacked Julien Hénault -Ratelle, quoting the mayors of Rosemont-La-Petite-Patrie, Verdun and Plateau-Mont-Royal. “When they get hundreds of complaints from their citizens, I doubt they’ll still be laughing at the situation. »
Mme Zuniga Ramos and Mr. Hénault-Ratelle say they have received numerous complaints from citizens of the borough who participated in a pilot project last year. This pilot project suggests that spacing out garbage collections could increase the use of other collection bins by 20%.