Donation bins becoming magnets for trash, charities complain
CBC News | Posted: December 18, 2019 12:12 PM | Last Updated: December 18, 2019
Gatineau non-profits blaming pair of recent bylaws
Some charities in Gatineau, Que., say their donation bins have become a dumping ground for people's unwanted garbage, and they're blaming a pair of city bylaws for making the problem worse.
Both bylaws came into effect in the last 18 months. The first bylaw restricts where charities can place their donation bins, while the second restricts the amount of large items such as furniture residents can leave at the curb on pickup day.
You're not helping us. You're costing us money. - Jean-Pierre Breton, St.-Vincent-de-Paul Riviera
That's led to fewer bins, and more junk piling up at the ones that remain.
"We're thinking of taking the boxes away," said Jean-Pierre Breton, president of the board of local charity St.-Vincent-de-Paul Riviera, which sells donated clothing and donates the surplus to people in need
"It will save us time. It will save us costs, because right now we're paying a lot of money, [more than] $12,000 a year, just to get rid of garbage."
Fierce competition
It's been a tough time for donation bins in Gatineau.
Last year, a man was charged for allegedly stealing and repainting donation bins to collect and sell clothing for profit. In late 2017, several charities complained to council about the fierce competition for donations.
- Gatineau set to rein in donation bins
- Charges laid after stolen clothing donation bins found in storage
In response, the city banned bins owned by for-profit companies and limited non-profit organizations to three bins per property.
Under the bylaw that came into effect in early fall, non-profits with bins on city property would also have to apply for new permits, which would be reviewed annually.
Few permits granted
According to data from the City of Gatineau, eight organizations applied for 75 permits, but half were abandoned. So far, only six permits have been granted.
Breton, whose charity has had some of its bins out for 40 years, said the new process has been a struggle.
Parc-de-la-Montagne-Saint-Raymond Coun. Louise Boudrias acknowledged the new regime hasn't gone as planned.
"One thing that we wanted to do was to make sure that the private companies were not able to have those kind of bins — that did work," she said in French. "On the other hand, because of the new regulations, what citizens were doing is they were dropping off all sorts of things."
She said Big Brothers Big Sisters lost $5,000 per month after removing their boxes.
"It was too expensive for them to manage," she said.
Illegal dumping decreasing
Plateau Coun. Maude Marquis-Bissonnette, president of the city's housing and environmental commission, said the city now allows charities to drop off sorted garbage for free.
Still, the councillor said the total amount of illegal dumping has decreased over the last year.
"That's exactly what we were expecting," she said. "For a few months there will be an increase and then it would decrease. That's what we've seen."
She said the city is open to reviewing the regulations but believes more time is needed to assess the situation.
Breton believes regulating the competition will help charities in the long run, but that the costs associated with hauling away garbage remain too much.
"We want people to give us what is good, [what still] has good value, so we can help our own people," Breton said. "But to give us garbage — empty paint cans, used tires, whatever — no. You're not helping us. You're costing us money."