Regular readers of this blog know of my enthusiasm for pneumatic waste collection. For years now, WaterfronToronto has been trying to get city hall to sign on to the idea for the West Don Lands. Well, I have just been tipped off to the news that Montreal has decided to install vacuum waste collection for its massive Quartier des Spectacles redevelopment.

Vacuum waste is the subject of my column in next month’s print edition, but it went to press before I could slip this latest news in, so I’m announcing it here. For now, suffice it to say that Toronto has lost its chance to become a North American showcase for an environmental technology that is quickly being adopted around the world.