Gaspé officials beg campers to stop dumping RV septic tanks, trash on beaches

The immaculate beaches on the Gulf of St. Lawrence are being defiled by litter and human waste, as Quebecers flock to the Gaspé region for the construction holiday.

Frustrated elected officials are begging campers and other visitors to enjoy nature without sullying it.

The Parti Québécois MNA for Gaspé, Méganne Perry Mélançon, called the situation "worrisome" in a Facebook post Wednesday, saying she's working with the minister responsible for the region, Marie-Ève ​​Proulx, as well as the Public Security Ministry, to increase police surveillance in the area.

In a tweet Thursday, Quebec provincial police said patrols will be increased in tourist areas to make sure people are complying with public health rules aimed at preventing the spread of the coronavirus, including wearing masks.

However, police are not threatening consequences.

"The presence of our police officers is intended first and foremost to be preventive," the Sûreté du Québec said.

Melançon encouraged Gaspé residents to report illegal behaviour to police.

"Although this additional monitoring will ensure better safety for occupants and citizens, we know that this response from the ministry cannot be the only solution," she said.

'It's a bit like hell this year': Gaspé mayor

The behaviour of many campers has come as a shock to local politicians, and Gaspé Mayor Daniel Côté fears there could be public health issues, as raw human waste soils the landscape.

"People have somehow appropriated public land, which has become almost private in some cases," he said on the Radio-Canada radio program, Bon pied, bonne heure! 

"It's a bit like hell this year."

Tourists have been pitching tents and parking campers anywhere they can find the space, now that COVID-19 has shut down Quebec's borders with the Maritimes and the United States.

People are camping on marshes and beaches, as well as in woodlands and parking lots, while towns struggle to manage the crowds, directing them to cheap overflow campgrounds and posting signs that encourage people to leave no trace.

So far, the signs seem to have had little effect.

Les Méchins, a town of 1,100 on the St. Lawrence River, about 150 kilometres northeast of Rimouski, said in a Facebook post that people with recreational vehicles are draining their septic tanks directly onto beaches, despite the fact that there are plenty of locations to safely dispose of human waste throughout the peninsula.

Anyone who spots this behaviour is encouraged to record the licence plates and report it, the town says.

Forest fires, erosion risk worry officials

Not far from Quebec's picturesque Cap Mont-Joli, Percé Mayor Cathy Poirier said her biggest fear is that a carelessly attended campfire could ignite the bone-dry vegetation and end in tragedy.

The Mi'gmag Gespeg Nation council has called on the nearby town of Gaspé to be more proactive, describing the situation as "out of control."

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Beyond the risk of forest fires, the council said in a statement that driftwood plays an important role in curbing erosion, and yet people are burning it unaware of the consequences. 

As well, the nesting grounds of some migratory birds are being excessively disturbed by all the activity, it said.

The mayor of Gaspé agrees with the First Nations community and says it's high time visitors clean up their behaviour.

"Gaspésiens are welcoming, have open arms, but a minimum of respect is needed for the local residents," said Côté. "Beaches are not campsites. Forests are not campsites. Our parking lots are not campsites."