In its report following the public consultation on the increase in international direct flights from Montreal, filed on March 12th, 2015, the Standing Committee on Economic and Urban Development and Housing Montreal has retained one of the key elements that les Pollués de Montréal-Trudeau submitted in the course of the hearings last fall.
The report recommends that the City make representations to the federal government that the Mayor of Montreal be appointed ex officio to the board of directors of Aéroports de Montreal (ADM), along with three elected representatives from the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal..
“Our request was somewhat more explicit,” says Raymond Prince, senior director of les Pollués. “We were asking that six elected representatives from Montreal be appointed to the board of directors, one from each of the following districts: Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Villeray-Saint-Michel-Parc-Extension and St. Laurent, and that in addition, a fourth seat be reserved for an elected representative from the municipality of Mont-Royal. But hey, it’s still a step in the right direction that the members of this committee share our interest to see that people who are accountable to the people act as directors of our airport infrastructure.”
Les Pollués de Montréal-Trudeau are still demanding the presence of two citizens of the community on the ADM board of directors to represent the interests of thousands of citizens inconvenienced by poor soundscape management from those responsible for air traffic in Montreal as well as those responsible for management of the airport.
Les Pollués also regret that the members of the Commission did not emphasize that the new direct international flights should be confined to the hours of 7.00 a.m. to 11.00 p.m. to respect the rights of citizens affected by aircraft noise pollution to restful sleep and a better quality of life.
Finally, les Pollués de Montréal-Trudeau found the last recommendation of the Commission to the effect that ADM continue to draw on best practices in communications management and nuisance to coexist in harmony with the environment, especially with regard to the protection of the environment of the metropolitan area of Montreal, in order to ensure safety and maximum quality of life for neighboring residents, to be complacent.
“The number of submissions to the Commission by groups and individuals highlighted the important problems of noise pollution in our neighborhoods and ADM’s opacity,” said Antoine Bécotte, president of les Pollués de Montréal-Trudeau.” ADM has refused for years to attend public meetings with citizens and denies categorically that the sound environment has deteriorated in recent years, and even that areas east of Highway 15 are affected by aircraft noise … ADM is a private company, and is really a long way from adopting best practices and being a good corporate citizen.”
The Executive Committee of the City of Montreal must now determine what it will do with the recommendations of the Standing Committee.