Each year, more than 8.3 million tonnes of waste end up in landfills across the province. At this rate, 9 of the 38 technical landfills in operation in Quebec should reach their maximum authorized capacity by 2030, according to BAPE data. Voices are calling for a review of the ways of doing things to reduce the quantity of landfilled materials.
“By managing by ultimatum, we always find ourselves making decisions quickly, by decree and which, in the end, favor the expansion of the sites”, denounces Karel Ménard, director general of the Quebec Common Front for ecological management of waste.
Since 2020, the Government of Quebec has authorized by decree expansions of three technical landfills: those of Sainte-Sophie and Drummondville, managed by Waste Management, as well as that of Lachenaie, which belongs to the Canadian subsidiary of Waste Connexions. .
It’s still very shocking to see the amount of material that is thrown away and the type of material
One of the solutions to curb expansions would involve greater transparency of the activities that take place there, according to Mr. Ménard. He cites the example of the quantity of covering materials which distorts the situation, according to him.
Made up of clean and contaminated soil, sand, glass and shredding residue, the covering materials are used daily to cover the ultimate waste that is buried.
However, not only are these materials not subject to the royalties that Quebec collects each time residues are eliminated, but they are not counted in the annual tonnage authorized for landfill sites, he points out: “Yet their amount has increased in recent years. »
The quantity of covering materials jumped by 25% between 2008 and 2019, and represents nearly 45% of what is found on the sites, according to recent estimates by Équiterre. “So when you take these materials into consideration, there are actually more materials ending up in landfills than there were ten years ago,” notes Amélie Côté, reduction analyst at the source at Equiterre.
“And it’s still very shocking to see the amount of material that is thrown away and the type of material,” she observes. She cites the example of the 292,000 tonnes of textiles, 1.5 million tonnes of organic matter and 215,000 tonnes of bulky items – such as furniture – buried each year.
These products should be diverted from the sites. We must “get out of this throwaway system” and extend the responsibility not only to consumers, but to industries, she says: “Essentially, 60% of landfilled materials come from industries, businesses and construction . So there is a lot to do in this area. »
To do this, it is imperative to increase landfill costs, according to her: “Right now, it doesn’t cost enough to throw away. The problem remains whether it is cheaper to eliminate than to reduce at source or to reuse, recycle or compost. »
On the industry side
Director General of the Environmental Technologies Business Council, Richard Mimeau, is well aware of what is happening in the industry: “It’s true that the capacity [d’enfouissement] sites is larger than what is currently allowed. »
However, he defends companies in the sector that process residual materials, arguing that they are more part of the solution than the problem: “These companies take care of citizens’ waste, not their own waste. Our members do everything to recover, but the ultimate waste, there will remain, and it must be buried properly. »
He adds: “And yes, these are multinationals like Waste Management, Waste Connexions [propriétaire de Complexe Enviro Connexions] or EBI. But there is not a municipality that, for example, recovers biogas as they do because they have the financial means to invest in these technologies and to do it correctly. »
A better understanding of what takes place “in these environmental complexes” would certainly make it possible to establish more effective orientations for the treatment of residual materials. “Because it’s a complex industry,” he says, citing the example of wanting to “get organics out of landfills.”
“In fact, organic matter is necessary for decomposition. If we completely remove the organic matter, we will only end up with solids. This is just one example of what needs to be considered. »