Forced to cut her lawn deemed too long, a resident of Sainte-Julie, in Montérégie, denounces the municipal by-law to this effect which is, according to her, obsolete, in addition to being harmful to the environment and biodiversity.
Pascale Brassard maintains her land in her own way, for example by regularly removing ragweed. She finds the diversity of grasses in front of her house beautiful and lively, and delights in seeing the little hares, chipmunk, birds and other animal species wandering there. However, she recently received a notice from the City, according to which her lawn cannot exceed 15 centimeters. The resident of the Hauts-Bois estate reacted by sending a letter to her municipality, in which she denounces the intensive lawn cutting and the use of pesticides to have a green lawn.
“I do not understand why the City regulates the height of the lawn which has no harmful effect on anyone, and which is even beneficial for bees and insects when we tolerate the use of pesticides which can cause cancer and kill dandelions,” says Pascale Brassard, in an interview with the QMI Agency.
She agreed to talk to us, but did not want us to take pictures of her lawn for privacy reasons.
According to her, the beauty standard of a very green lawn, without weeds and with the air of “golf green” is over and is not ecological.
“I am outraged that citizens can mow their lawn every 2 millimeters of regrowth. The use of the mower, particularly the gas-powered one, pollutes the air in an aberrant way,” the citizen said in her letter. She has, despite her position, resigned herself to cutting her lawn to avoid having a fine.
Disorganized terrain
Without wanting to comment specifically on this file, the City of Sainte-Julie says that it intervenes only if the land is disorganized. “If we see that the citizen has a desire to let the grass grow in a natural and organized way so that it does not clash in the neighborhood, we will tolerate it. On the other hand, if it seems abandoned, we will intervene, ”explains the spokesperson, Julie Martin.
COURTESY PHOTO / City of Sainte-Julie
For his part, the director of urban planning, Pierre-Luc Blanchard, is of the opinion that it is necessary to open the discussion on the regulatory length of the lawn. “To change a philosophy or a regulation, you need the will of the population. We must embark on a more environmental movement. But changing mindsets takes time.”
He concedes that land that has all kinds of flowers or plants that grow naturally can be very beautiful. Provided that the ground is “organized”, he adds.
COURTESY PHOTO / City of Sainte-Julie
A settlement from another era?
Mowing the lawn less often would have beneficial effects on several levels, according to a recent study carried out by researchers from the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières.
For example, according to this study published in 2020 in the “Journal of Applied Ecology”, mowing twice a year rather than six would decrease the number of grubs, increase the number of pollinators and reduce the heat on the ground.
“We have only seen benefits,” said one of the authors of the study, Raphaël Proulx, professor in the department of environmental sciences at the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières. On the other hand, he notes that longer grass would attract more mice and small rodents.
According to him, the regulations on the length of the lawn date from another era. “In Europe, the management of parks is done almost like meadows for making hay. In Quebec, we are really behind when it comes to green spaces,” he says, adding that Quebecers must change their habits.