While not dependent on it, Montreal greatly benefits from its tourism. Its historic sites and city culture attracts folk from around the world. Over 10 million a year, in fact.
However, the challenge of balancing tourism with sustainability remains a key talking point. Many believe that tourism is inherently unsustainable – but is this always the case?
The impact of large complexes on sustainability
One element to sustainable tourism is in its city design and zoning laws. Large complexes like the Montreal Casino are built under the pretence that they use resources efficiently and centralize waste management. This is intended to reduce the environmental footprint compared to scattered developments. However, large complexes can also strain local ecosystems due to concentrated use.
For example, the development of Royalmount mega-mall has caused many severe traffic disruptions, and such focal points create ongoing problems down the line, particularly the pollution and poor air quality that comes with it. While these complexes can boost local economies through tourism and job creation, the social and cultural impacts need careful consideration.
As we know, unlike retail, visiting a casino online is actually greener than going in real life. But, Montreal casino is vital for local tourism, and it likely wouldn’t benefit from spread around the city. The same could be said for retail, and tourists who don’t know the city well need focal points. But, of course, it comes at the price of large developments, higher rents, and drowning out more naturally occurring commerce in other parts of the city. The key is in the balance between the two.
Promoting Eco-friendly Transportation
Montreal has an extensive public transit system, but there is room to enhance green transportation options. Currently, the promotion of eco-friendly transport is limited to just the REM and buses. To address this, the city could consider expanding bike-sharing programmes and increase the availability of electric vehicle charging stations. They of course lower emissions, but they’re also useful for having a quieter city, of which Montreal suffers badly with noise pollution.
Integrating more sustainable transportation options such as electric buses and promoting car-free zones in tourist-heavy areas can have a significant impact. Tourists actually want to walk most of the time and avoid renting a car, but only when it’s convenient enough.
Sustainable Accommodation Options
Montreal has a gap in eco-friendly lodging options. While Airbnb can convert existing properties, minimising waste from new construction, it also drives up local rents and reduces housing availability. Therefore, dedicated eco-friendly lodging options may offer a better balance.
There has been a lot public backlash to AirBnB’s impact on local rent prices. In Spain and Portugal there have been protests, with even some visitors getting notes left on their doors saying “go home”. Montreal already suffers from high prices, so diversifying away from it may be something that gets discussed more and more.
When pivoting to green options, the city can incentivise green hotel certifications and encourage the development of eco-lodges. Eco-accommodations tend to include energy-efficient systems, waste reduction measures and eco-friendly materials. Hotels, like complexes, can concentrate resources and not influence the local market, but do have more local disruptions and emissions during development.
Expanding Green Spaces and Parks
Montreal is actively working to increase its green spaces. The city plans to create the Grand Parc de l’Ouest, the largest urban park in Canada. This park will protect wetlands and enhance biodiversity. The city also aims to plant 500,000 trees by 2030, focusing on areas vulnerable to heat islands.
Another key initiative is the development of five new green corridors to connect existing parks and living environments. These corridors will facilitate recreational mobility and support biodiversity. Transforming parking lots into open spaces and implementing minimum greening requirements for new buildings are other strategies to expand green spaces.
Of course, these may not be directly related to tourism, but they can be. Having “the largest urban park in Canada” is something that can be branded. And, the more time that tourists spend in such green areas is the less time spent contributing to traffic – so long as the park is easily accessed.
Fortunately, the Réseau express métropolitain is being expanded, and five new REM stations will connect to different sections of the park. Buses also go to other parks too, highlighting that it is possible to develop such large infrastructure projects with a legitimate claim to sustainability. In this case, the infrastructure will be able to accommodate many tourists without increasing emissions.
Conclusion
Balancing tourism with sustainability in Montreal requires a comprehensive approach, but good work is already being done to ensure that visitors can visit with a clean conscience. Integrating efficient transportation, eco-friendly accommodations and expansive green spaces is helping the city host many visitors without driving up emissions, meaning that not all tourism is inherently unsustainable.
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