ENVIRONMENTAL INITIATIVES

 

Recycling

We introduced 240 litre recycling bins with 4 times the capacity of the old blue boxes. The new bins have lids, so loose papers do not blow away.

Composting

Our Fall leaf and lawn debris collection diverts 250 tons of garbage to composting. Food waste composting collection is expected to start late in 2009 or early in 2010. Half the start up costs will be covered by government grants.

 

Clean Air

Hampstead was the first town in Canada to ban wood burning stoves. Montreal has since followed our lead with its own bylaw. Wood burning appliances produce 47% of the smog on the island.

 

Hazardous Waste

We have an annual collection of hazardous waste and we also have bins for the collection of used batteries in Town Hall and the Community Centre.

 

Water Conservation

In 2008 we raised our water tax rate to fully cover our water costs while dropping the general property tax by the equivalent dollar amount. Aside from being fairer, we expected this measure to encourage residents to be more prudent in their use of water and less wasteful. That is exactly what happened.

 

Communications

We have an environmental section on our web site with numerous tips on being green. We also have “green” booths at some of our events with information on being environmentally responsible. Our May newsletter focuses on green issues.

 

Energy Conservation

In 2008 we gave every household a free compact florescent light bulb to encourage the use of these cost effective and energy efficient CFLs. With Hydro Quebec, we have encouraged residents to complete an energy usage survey. Residents who completed the survey got a personalized report, detailing steps that they could take to save energy and the town got a grant from Hydro Quebec for trees.

 

Cleanliness

We have doubled the number of garbage receptacles and we introduced dog bag dispensers to help keep our town clean.