The City of Matane is a municipality on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River in Quebec’s Gaspé region. Although Europeans were present in the area since the 17th century, Matane was officially established as a village (Saint-Jérôme-de-Matane) in 1893 and became a city in 1937. In 2001, it merged with neighboring municipalities, expanding Matane’s territory to over 200 km² and bringing its population to nearly 15 000 residents. Today, Matane stands as the main administrative, economic, and cultural center of its region.
As a municipal government, Matane’s mission is to ensure the community’s smooth functioning and to meet the needs of its citizens by providing a broad range of public services. Beyond these core services, the City of Matane also serves as a mandated agent in administering various financial support programs from higher levels of government or dedicated funds. In practical terms, the City acts as an intermediary that channels financial aid to local residents, businesses, and projects, with the goal of improving quality of life and guiding local development in line with established priorities.
These support programs align with strategic priorities such as environmental protection, energy transition, infrastructure maintenance, and overall sustainable development. For instance, Matane has created a municipal green fund using compensation received for hosting a landfill site, and it utilizes this dedicated fund to support local environmental projects. Through this fund and other measures, the City encourages eco-friendly practices by offering financial incentives for the purchase of durable products and environmentally conscious equipment. Examples include rebates for buying rainwater harvesting barrels or reusable cloth diapers, with the City refunding a portion of the cost to residents. The municipality also supports water conservation by assisting with the installation of ultra-low-flow toilets, and it promotes waste reduction at the source by subsidizing reusable hygiene products (cloth diapers, washable pads, menstrual cups, etc.) to decrease reliance on disposable items.
In the realm of energy and transportation, the City of Matane supports the transition to greener mobility. It offers financial assistance for the purchase of bicycles, both traditional and electric-assist, to encourage sustainable transportation among residents. Moreover, Matane has contributed to the rollout of electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the region, helping pave the way for transportation electrification and a reduction in carbon emissions. These initiatives demonstrate the City’s commitment to energy efficiency and clean energy solutions for the benefit of the community.
With regard to infrastructure and roads, the City plays a pivotal role in directing government grants to local projects aimed at upgrading roads, water and sewer systems, and public facilities. Matane’s three-year capital works plan calls for major investments to modernize these municipal infrastructures, a large portion of which is funded through external assistance covering up to 66 % of the costs. Thanks to this support, Matane is able to carry out important works such as refurbishing streets and wastewater pumping stations, separating storm and sanitary sewer networks to better protect the environment, and building new bicycle and pedestrian paths to enhance active transportation safety.
Finally, the City of Matane is involved in support programs addressing other aspects of local development. For example, it collaborates on initiatives to help residents in unserviced areas upgrade obsolete septic systems to current standards, thereby protecting groundwater quality and the environment. Additionally, to revitalize its urban areas, Matane offers incentive programs in the form of tax credits or renovation grants in certain sectors, encouraging housing construction and the modernization of older neighborhoods. All of these efforts illustrate the proactive role of the City of Matane as a manager of financial support: it ensures that available funds—whether from its own budgets or from provincial and federal programs—are used effectively for the well-being of the community and the sustainable development of the region.
