On the other side of the Garonne, the dome of La Grave is the most photographed site in Toulouse. But in the foreground, the garbage is there, on the stairs of St. Peter’s Square. This Friday, October 15 in the morning, the town hall of Toulouse decided of do not clean part of the site, to alert on the waste accumulated during the festive nights.

Because even if some bins are full, others are empty. And on the steps leading down to the river, beer cans and greasy fast food papers accumulate. Every day after a party, on weekends, 400 kilos of litter are thus collected by the municipal agents who clean the place. Not to mention all the garbage that could be thrown into the Garonne.

100,000 euros per payroll, to clean up

And the overall cost is important for the municipality, explains Emilion Esnault, deputy mayor of Toulouse in charge of the good performance of the public space: “every year, over is 4,000 cleaning hours on this site. It represents around 100,000 euros only in payroll. Not to mention equipment, products, washers, etc.“Because in addition to garbage collection, St. Peter’s Square is cleaned every morning with high pressure water.

Leaving this waste there for a few days is therefore a way for Emilion Esnault to awaken the consciences which should still be asleep: “on this site, we cross limits, and we wanted to remind people of it in a shocking way“. On this issue of litter, Place Saint-Pierre is one of the city’s black spots, along with Place de la Daurade. The municipality also announces that it wants to increase the number of selective sorting points in the area. But is an alcoholic party animal will be able to sort it out clearly at 3 a.m.

If you have to put your nose in the m … to get people to react, that’s what you have to do!

The initiative does not leave passers-by indifferent. “It is violent as an image, but it is surely necessary to become aware of people“Francis reacts. As for Michèle, she is saddened by this spectacle:”Looks like it’s been a week old, but no, it’s just garbage from that night? Ah well done!“. Serge is more radical, and understands the idea of ​​leaving this garbage there for a while to alert:”I’m going to be a little vulgar, but if you have to put your nose in the shit to get people to react, that’s what you have to do with people, to shock them. When the garbage collectors are on strike, they are shocked …“