HEC Montréal
OP-9: Landscape Management

The total number of hectares indicated represent the gross campus area. Net ground surface is 1.68 hectares (area excluding parking, roads and building). Total Campus area is 3.4 hectares.

For the purpose of landscape management, no fertilizer, pest control product or fungicides are used anymore unless required to control a major pest issue. Mechanical technique, such as manual week removal, or pruning to eliminate pests or control diseases, are preferred. Grass accounts for a small part of campus landscape - most of HEC's landscape is covered by a forest or garden.

HEC Montréal is managing its land in accordance with the four-tiered approach. In last resort, if mechanical or passive pest control mechanism was ineffective, pest control activities are conducted only when the presence of the pest is detected, using homologated pesticide in accordance with the Québec Code de gestion des pesticides. No HEC staff uses regulated pest control products except the one identified as low impact pest control products for weed control. Hazardous pest control product, such as mice or insects biocides, is used only when other non-artificial means, such as prevention and engineering improvement, failed to prevent pest. Ash trees are also identified and submitted to preventive treatment for emerald ash borer. Infected ash trees are rapidly eliminated in accordance with local regulation.
HEC Montréal is closely monitoring the health of its trees with the help of an engineer. Trees are pruned regularly, and sometimes stabilized with cables, to ensure they grow healthy without causing a nuisance to building. Any tree that dies are cut, removed from the site if infected by parasites or attacked by a disease that can spread to other trees, and replaced by at least three new saplings of specie recommended by our engineer.

Due to the location of the campus and the environmental sensitivity related to Montréal’s Mont-Royal, HEC is managing its natural feature in the most natural, ecosystems way. Specifically, the Cote-Sainte-Catherine building is built directly in a part of the Mont-Royal forest, and tree protection was integrated in the building design and shape. A specialized gardener is hired to ensure the trees and plants maintenance is done in a way to protect and reproduce the natural local ecosystem.

Outdoor irrigation system have been decomissionned, and grass is no more watered. Areas where grass was not receiving enough rain to survive have been renovated to replace grass by mineral arrangement. Manual irrigation is used to help newly planted trees or to water gardens when rain is not sufficient.

Very limited waste is produced by the landscape management activities - most of dead leaves are left on our forest floor, but a small part is still discarded when contaminated by too much waste (ex. cigarette filter)

Landscape management does not require a lot of energy; most operations are conducted manually, and the maintenance team uses a small-scale tractor with adapted tools to perform most tasks (moving materials, emptying garbage bins, snow plowing and application of sand/salt, etc.). Future efforts will be made to replace gas powered tools with more eco-friendly tools, but due to their light use, tools are used for an extensive period of time before being replaced.

During the long Canadian winter, de-icing material is carefully procured to ensure the most effective mixture is used to melt ice in pedestrian alleys. Salt with additive, such as beet juice and blue dye, are preferred - they require less application to obtain safe conditions, and dye helps operator to control applications and avoid overspreading.