The Citizens’ Committee of RDP-PAT and Sanimax was created in 2020 with the mission of fostering a more respectful relationship between the company and the surrounding community. The committee is therefore responsible for following up with Sanimax on the advancement of the proposed improvements to the RDP-PAT plant, with an open, positive, and collaborative spirit.
To date, the committee has held more than ten meetings, which have helped its members to better understand the actions taken by the company to improve its operations, its follow-up of complaints and its actions to further improve. The committee is currently made up of citizens elected by their peers, company representatives and government representatives (municipal, provincial, and federal).
For several meetings, according to most members, the general atmosphere of the committee has become dysfunctional, to the point of completely paralyzing discussions on measures to improve cohabitation. This situation is unfortunate since it contradicts the committee’s mission and affects the relationship of trust between the community, Sanimax, and government representatives.
Aiming to enable a real dialogue between citizens and Sanimax and following the wish of citizens to continue to participate in the work of the committee, Sanimax has proposed to review the composition of the committee, according to the following format, effective immediately:
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Citizen members
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Representatives of Sanimax
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Two external representatives with expertise relevant to the committee (rendering, environment, agri-food, etc.)
This new structure respects the intent of the committee and will allow the parties involved to focus their efforts on working with the Ministère de l’Agriculture, des Pêcheries et de l’Alimentation to develop a plan specifically for lasting improvements to the Montreal plant. The citizens want the collaboration to produce results that are beneficial to all.
All members expressed a desire to have the committee membership reviewed again in the very near future. In the meantime, Sanimax indicated that it will continue to discuss with those interested in its activities through the appropriate communication channels.
The citizen members trust that this new structure will make it possible to put forward concrete measures to achieve the improvements that both the community and the company want to see.
The citizen members of the Citizens’ Committee of RDP-PAT and Sanimax
For more information:
Rémi Bujold, President of the Citizens’ Committee of RDP-PAT and Sanimax, 418 930-3564
