{"id":3709,"date":"2026-05-08T20:55:23","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T20:55:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/when-clothing-theft-also-destroys-donation-sites\/"},"modified":"2026-05-08T20:55:32","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T20:55:32","slug":"when-clothing-theft-also-destroys-donation-sites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/when-clothing-theft-also-destroys-donation-sites\/","title":{"rendered":"When clothing theft also destroys donation sites"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When clothing theft also destroys donation sites<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n

The two photos above show more than just an overflow of clothes. They illustrate a reality little known to the public: the direct consequences of theft from donation containers. <\/p>\n\n

Behind each ransacked site, there’s a whole chain of human, environmental and financial impacts that hit social economy organizations like Fondation La Collecte hard.<\/p>\n\n

And contrary to popular belief, these situations are not caused solely by a surplus of donations. Very often, they start with illegal intrusions into the containers. <\/p>\n\n

A documented problem throughout Quebec<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

This phenomenon has been reported for several years by several Quebec media.<\/p>\n\n

In 2017, TVA Nouvelles reported that repeated thefts were forcing a Granby organization to constantly repair its containers and absorb significant financial losses. Thieves would force padlocks and even use poles to extract bags of clothing. <\/p>\n\n

<\/figure>\n\n

In 2026, Radio-Canada also published a report on soiled and vandalized donation bins after trespassing and illegal sorting on the premises. Radio-Canada – Soiled donation bins and clothing thefts<\/a><\/p>\n\n

The problem is not limited to containers. Community organizations in Quebec have also seen their warehouses completely raided, resulting in major losses of clothing destined for vulnerable families. <\/p>\n\n

What the public can’t see<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

When someone illegally enters a container, they do so at their own risk. This equipment is not designed to be entered from the inside. <\/p>\n\n

But beyond the human danger, the real problem often begins after the theft.<\/p>\n\n

Bags are opened on the spot.Clothes are spread out on the ground.Items are sorted directly in the parking lot.Items not deemed “resalable” are abandoned on site.<\/p>\n\n

Result:<\/p>\n\n

– clothes soiled by rain, oil, mud or garbage– accumulation of stale bags– major visual pollution– complaints from shopkeepers and property owners– municipal calls and emergency interventions– massive increase in clean-up costs<\/p>\n\n

And when it rains, the situation quickly gets worse.<\/p>\n\n

A large proportion of textiles then becomes irrecoverable and must be sent to the ecocenter or landfill, even if these garments were originally donated for reuse.<\/p>\n\n

An invisible cost for Fondation La Collecte<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

Each vandalized site entails significant operational costs:<\/p>\n\n

– emergency team travel– driver overtime– truck fuel and use– manual site clean-up– replacement or repair of locks and equipment– loss of recoverable donations– deterioration in relations with landowning partners<\/p>\n\n

And unlike large private chains, social economy organizations absorb these costs directly into their mission.<\/p>\n\n

For Fondation La Collecte, this means fewer resources available to support its social mission with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Montreal.<\/p>\n\n

Each destroyed or contaminated bag represents :<\/p>\n\n

– environmental loss– economic loss– social loss<\/p>\n\n

Important confusion to be clarified<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

It’s also important to remember that Fondation La Collecte does not collect waste.<\/p>\n\n

Our containers are intended only for :<\/p>\n\n

– reusable clothing– shoes– small reusable household items<\/p>\n\n

When sites become zones for illegal sorting or dumping, this creates major confusion with municipal waste management services.<\/p>\n\n

This confusion has a direct impact on community organizations and their partners.<\/p>\n\n

A real environmental challenge<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

Ransacking sites also has a significant ecological impact.<\/p>\n\n

According to an investigation by the newspaper 24 Heures, several Quebec organizations are already overflowing with low-quality textiles linked to overconsumption and fast fashion. <\/p>\n\n

When clothes are left on the ground in the rain or mixed with garbage, their reusability disappears completely.<\/p>\n\n

The result:<\/p>\n\n

– increase in volumes sent to the ecocenter– increase in transportation and disposal costs– loss of reusable material– increase in emissions linked to textile waste processing<\/p>\n\n

A collective responsibility<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n

Most people give with good intentions.<\/p>\n\n

But to preserve these donations, we also need to protect the collection sites.<\/p>\n\n

A few simple gestures can make a huge difference:<\/p>\n\n

– never put bags outside a full container– report an overflow before depositing– use home collection when available– report trespassing and vandalism– give preference to clean, usable donations<\/p>\n\n

Protecting donations begins even before they are collected.<\/p>\n\n

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Sources cited<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n
<\/figure>\n\n

– Radio-Canada – Soiled donation bins and thefts of clothing<\/a>– TVA Nouvelles – Repeated thefts from clothing containers in Granby – Journal de Montr\u00e9al – Theft from an organization providing clothing to children – 24 Heures – Parcours des v\u00eatements donn\u00e9s au Qu\u00e9bec (In French only) <\/p>\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When clothing theft also destroys donation sites The two photos above show more than just an overflow of clothes. They illustrate a reality little known to the public: the direct consequences of theft from donation containers. Behind each ransacked site, there’s a whole chain of human, environmental and financial impacts that hit social economy organizations […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":3710,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[116,121,117,118,120,123,122,119],"class_list":["post-3709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-non-classifiee","tag-container","tag-degradation","tag-environment","tag-flight","tag-overflow","tag-pollution","tag-reduction","tag-social-economy"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3709"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3709\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3711,"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3709\/revisions\/3711"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationlacollecte.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}