Residents of Saint-Amable, a town east of Montreal, could face a $200 municipal tax if they don’t have at least one leafy tree in their front yard.
It’s a long-standing bylaw. What changed is how it’s being enforced, according to general manager Jean-Sébastien Ménard.
He said the push to enforce the rule stems from growing concerns over the town’s vulnerability to extreme heat, as highlighted in a report from Université Laval.
A map shows that Saint-Amable has an overabundance of concrete and asphalt that traps heat making it an area with higher exposure to extreme heat waves.
“We absolutely need to reduce heat islands,” said Ménard. “This report changed everything about our approach.”
The solution? Doubling the tree canopy, said Ménard.
To achieve this, the town turned to technology.
A turn to artificial intelligence
In 2024, AI-powered mapping vehicles surveyed Saint-Amable and identified approximately 1,200 properties without a deciduous tree in the front yard.
Homeowners received notices instructing them to plant a tree before the end of the year or face a $200 charge on their next tax bill.
By the year’s end, 800 property owners had complied. The remaining 400 are expected to plant trees by the end of 2025, or be charged annually until they do.
Frustration among some residents
While the initiative is rooted in environmental benefits, some residents argue the rollout has been flawed.
Alexandrine Gemme, a life-long resident of Saint-Amable, said she was blindsided by the tax.
“They sent the notice to my tenants next door,” she said. “I never received it. I only found out when I saw the charge on my tax bill.”
She planted a tree but remains frustrated by what she calls a lack of clarity in the rules.
The bylaw mandates leafy, deciduous trees, and for properties on a corner lot—like hers—two trees are required, one for each street-facing side.
Gemme also believes that going through municipal taxes is taking away legal recourses for residents to contest.
“It feels like a cash grab,” she said. “No one is against planting trees or doing more for the environment, but the way this is being done is unfair.”
Another resident, Xavier Berthiaume, believes the town should have explored alternative methods before resorting to taxation.
“Because now it feels like the burden is on us,” he said. “This is a band-aid solution to a much bigger problem—there just aren’t enough green spaces.”
Others have raised concerns over errors in the mapping process. Ménard admitted that of the 50 residents who challenged the tax, half were able to get it reversed due to mistakes.
Even so, he said the town stands by the approach.
“In the past, enforcing the bylaw would have meant sending inspectors, issuing fines, and possibly going to court,” he said. “That’s a long process. This method gets results much faster.”
He said Saint-Amable is forging ahead with its plan to combat heat islands by committing to planting 12,000 trees on public land over the next few years.
The AI-powered mapping vehicles will be back this spring, scanning properties once again to determine who’s complied—and who still needs to plant a tree.
