Cost savings vs. concerns as Laval, Que., shifts to trash pickup every 2 weeks

Quebec’s third-largest city is switching from weekly garbage and recycling collection to every two weeks in a cost-saving move it says is better for the environment. But the plan is getting mixed reaction from residents and opposition councillors.

David De Cotis, who represents the Saint-Bruno district in Laval, Que., said the move reduces services at a time when property taxes are going up.  

“There’s still going to be the same amount of garbage,” he said, noting not all organic waste can be diverted to composting.

“There’s diapers. There’s pet waste. There’s meat packaging and so on. This kind of waste, over two weeks, will decompose in the summer. There’s rodents. There’s insects.”

Picking up recycling and garbage every two weeks on an alternating schedule begins April 1. It’s a system already used by many municipalities in the Montreal metropolitan area. 

De Cotis, with Action Laval, proposed a motion demanding public consultations, but it was defeated. Some Montreal-area municipalities have backtracked on the decision to collect every two weeks, he said.

“Each region of Laval lives a different reality. Let’s consult these different regions of Laval. Maybe it’s fine. Maybe everyone is happy and collecting garbage every two weeks is the way to go. But maybe it’s not,” De Cotis said. 

“It’s such a major decision that impacts the citizens of Laval. We owe it to them to consult them.”

An online petition against the decision has already garnered more than 5,000 signatures. It says weekly pickups are essential to prevent odours, health risks and pest infestations. It calls on the city to reconsider the decision in the interest of public health and the environment.

On the other hand, Laval says on its website that the move is a responsible, environmentally driven decision that aligns with provincial and metropolitan requirements. 

It says the change will cut greenhouse gas emissions, reduce landfill waste and lower transportation and operating costs by an estimated 22 per cent, while helping meet its target of 200 kilograms of waste per resident annually. 

Laval says the shift builds on years of waste-reduction measures, noting additional support and education planned to ease the transition.

Ray Khalil, a city councillor with the governing Mouvement Lavallois party who represents the district of Sainte-Dorothée, said local cities are making the switch because dumps are filling too quickly.

“We have a tendency to throw our garbage and forget about it. But in reality, it doesn't just disappear. It essentially goes into a big hole,” he said.