Montreal opens first compost plant in St-Laurent [Video]

After years of discussion, Montreal’s first compost plant officially opened Monday.

Truckloads of organic matter will be composted there — it can process 50,000 tonnes of yard waste and food scraps yearly.

Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante said the city previously had to send its organic waste to Ontario, travelling almost 200 kilometres before the composting started.

“Now, with this centre, I mean, the distance will be maximum six kilometres,” she said.

The site will produce up to 20,000 tonnes of high-grade compost each year. Since the contamination rate is below 1 per cent, the brown gold can be spread safely on fields and greenspaces, while reducing what goes to landfill.

Quebec’s environment minister, Benoit Charette, said the majority of what goes in the trash is organic.

“We can treat that, we can do compost, we can make renewable energy. So, it’s a total waste to send these substances to landfills,” …