MONTREAL -- No less than half a million disposable masks are being used by high school students and staff every day in Quebec.
The blue masks are being provided by the province, but school officials were initially in the dark on who would pay for the disposal of the blue masks.
On Tuesday, the ministry of education clarified the situation.
The press secretary for Education Minister Jean-Francois Roberge told The Canadian Press that money spent on the purchase and recycling of the masks will be repaid to school service centres.
"Fortunately, our young people are very sensitive to environmental issues," said Cote.
"Companies, many of which are from Quebec, (...) offer the recovery and treatment of disposable masks," she added. "We of course invite schools to take advantage of these services."
On Jan.6, the Legault government announced that it was changing its strategy and would provide, as of Jan. 18, two procedural masks per day to high school students and teachers.
The government, however, has remained completely silent on what will happen to the 85 million masks that will be distributed to schools by the end of the school year.
According to the president of the Quebec Federation of Educational Institutions, Nicolas Prevost, recovery of the masks could have been organized well before the start of the school year.
"To date, only certain schools have boxes available to collect soiled masks. Young people are not at all comfortable throwing their masks in the trash," Prevost said.
The president of the FQDE added that it would have been preferable if the distribution and recovery of the masks could have been set up at the same time.
"It would have been simpler and above all more beneficial for the planet," he said.
Provost also points out that the masks sent to the schools are sometimes too large for younger students' faces.
"Could we have planned a little in advance?" he asked.
Meantime, Franz Benjamin, Liberal MNA for Viau, estimates the cost of recycling tens-of-millions of used masks from schools will cost $30 to $35 million.
He said without additional help, schools would not have the means to embark on the collection and eco-responsible treatment of masks.
A member of Quebec Solidaire, Ruba Ghazal, filed a petition on Tuesday asking the government to ensure the masks are disposed of in an eco-responsible manner.
The petition also calls for the government to ensure the recycling is done locally.
About a hundred people had signed it by Tuesday afternoon.
The Ministry of Education claims to have given a leaflet to schools listing various companies specializing in recycling.
Last May, environmental groups sounded the alarm and warned that disposable masks were becoming another source of pollution.
