The municipality issued a cease work order and reported the situation to the appropriate officials after the municipal inspector discovered a large scale illegal dumping involving two Gatineau-based companies.
Allyson Beauregard
The municipality issued a cease work order and reported the situation to the appropriate officials after the municipal inspector discovered a large scale illegal dumping involving two Gatineau-based companies.
Allyson Beauregard
MUNICIPALITY OF PONTIAC — Following a routine patrol on May 31 the municipality’s urban planning inspector intervened to stop a large scale, illegal landfill on farmland along Smith Leonard Road where a road over a kilometre long was constructed using crushed building supplies including cements and bricks as well as other contaminated materials. The operation involved two enterprises from the Gatineau area, a trucking company using six dump trucks and a waste-management service, all hired by the property owner to construct the road.
According to an anonymous source, the trucking company had already been paid about $75,000 by the property owner when the operation was discovered.
The municipality promptly issued a cease work order and reported the situation to the ministère du Développement durable, de l’Environne-ment et de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques (MDDELCC) and to the Commission de
protection du territoire agricole du Québec (CPTAQ) to ensure the work is permanently stopped, the land is restored to its former state, and the offenders are fined.
According to Mayor Roger Larose, it’s important that the businesses involved are held accountable for their actions: “Some unscrupulous companies seem to have become accustomed to getting rid of their waste in rural areas. The municipality wants to send a clear message that this kind of practice is not acceptable. We will ensure all parties involved are prosecuted.” According to Dominic Labrie, Pontiac Communic-ations Officer, this is the largest illegal dumping the municipality has ever witnessed. “We have seen small incidents where items have been dumped, but nothing of this size. There are some companies who want to get rid of their waste and don’t care about laws and regulations,” said Labrie.
In April, Council began the process of amending its by-law to govern soil excavation and cut-and-fill operations within the municipality’s territory. Under this regulation, any fill activity is subject to material quality standards predetermined by the MDDELCC and those doing the work must first receive authorization from the municipality.
