Hamilton city staff revealed at a recent council meeting that an agreement with a contractor to clean up dumping sites and encampment debris had lapsed, leaving the city with limited ability to respond to requests.
Discussion on the matter was initiated by Councillor Matt Francis (Ward 5 – Hamilton East-Stoney Creek), who brought forward a motion calling for the city to “immediately prioritize and undertake cleanup and remediation” of a list of locations that he said are of concern.
Francis said that there are “explosions of filth” at the Red Hill Valley Parkway at Barton Street (Red Hill Creek), Barton Street between Bow Valley Drive and Lake Avenue North, and the area of Quigley Road and Albright Road.
He told staff that some of the locations have been dirty for “months” and that one of them had been there for “over a year”, which led him to bring forward his motion.
Francis said that timely remediation of the sites is “critical,” especially when environmentally sensitive areas are involved.
He added that the current cleanup response timelines are often prolonged, which he said results in “ongoing environmental degradation and community concern.”
The sites reportedly contain items such as gas tanks, propane tanks, and paint cans.
Francis encouraged the city to act now before the garbage is covered by vegetation.
In response to Francis’ questioning regarding clean-up timelines, city staff said that the sites are in “difficult to reach areas” and are different from the illegal dumping that occurs in ditches and along roadsides across the city.
When situations involve hard-to-reach areas, the city reportedly procures a contractor, but staff explained that their contract with the clean-up crew ended “late last year.”
Staff said that they “were not able to have no gap in service.”
They added that some areas “may not be safe to access” for clean-up.
Staff also told Council that they do not have any sort of clean-up blitz when the snow melts, and dumping becomes more visible.
Francis’ motion also directed staff to expedite response timelines for illegal dumping and cleanup of former encampment debris across the city.
Staff were also directed to report back to the Public Works Committee with a breakdown of current service standards and response times for cleanup, barriers to timely remediation, including staffing, equipment, or coordination issues, and opportunities to improve response times.
Francis also requested that all necessary work take place using existing resources and approved budgets.
Francis’ motion passed unanimously.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
