Recycling Council of Ontario CANADIAN PACKAGING EPR 24 October 2019
• Not-for-profit, membership-based organization • Focused on policies and practices that advance the circular economy Recycling Council of Ontario supporting resource efficiency, waste reduction, and reduced GHG emissions • Instrumental in developing Ontario’s original curbside Blue Box program • Policy and advocacy, program development & management, research & pilot projects • Campaigns for greater transparency and information exchange to inform meaningful multi-stakeholder engagement • Facilitates discussions/agreements: Government / Private / Public • Outcomes and principles-based policy making • Advocates for verifiable environmental outcomes 2
EPR for Printed Paper and Packaging • Ontario’s PPP (Blue Box) program began as pilot in late 1980s • Partnership between municipalities and a small set of producers (beverage category) • Started with a ‘test’ in one municipality with a small 32% scope of packaging types Recycling Council of Ontario • Success led to entrenched model in regulation where 68% municipalities with population greater than 5,000 required to offer curbside collection for packaging • For 20+ years municipalities subsidised service through taxes • Grew and improved operations to include broader scope materials 3
Old World Recycling Council of Ontario Waste Diversion Act (WDA), 2002 4
EPR for Printed Paper and Packaging • WDA required producers to cover 50% of the cost for collection and recycling Blue Box materials • PPP regulation under the WDA established • Ontario’s first Industry Funding Organizations (IFOs ) or Collectives were given legal authority to charge and collect fees from producers to pay their 50% Recycling Council of Ontario • Waste Diversion Ontario (WDO) established to ensure IFOs were formed and submitted plans that met requirements • Municipalities maintain autonomy as to design and management of their individual program: scope of materials, service levels, costs • Municipalities report tonnes to WDO and SO to trigger payments 5
EPR for Printed Paper and Packaging • IFOs required to submit program plans to WDO: • performance targets • operational standards • financial information • Self-determined benchmarks became performance requirements • Producers required to pay into IFOs unless they received Recycling Council of Ontario approval of their own independent program or model (if they chose to submit) • IFOs held liability and risk of non-performance or non- compliance on behalf of producers • Regulation had no consequences or penalties for non- compliance or non-performance • Government, WDO, affected stakeholders, or producers had line of sight into data or information gathered to inform performance 6
2017 Ontario Performance • 245 municipal programs submitted data to RPRA • total population: 13,729,001 • total household count: 5,547,000. Recycling Council of Ontario 7
Waste Diversion Rate: 2012-2017 Recycling Council of Ontario 8
Residential Diversion by Source (tonnes), 2017 Recycling Council of Ontario 9
Marketed Blue Box Tonnes, 2012-2017 Recycling Council of Ontario 10
Total Blue Box Revenue and Costs by Category, 2017 Recycling Council of Ontario 11
New World Recycling Council of Ontario Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy Act (RRCEA), 2016 12
Resource Recovery Circular Economy Act • Transformational waste diversion framework to support Ontario’s vision: a circular economy. • Waste-Free Ontario Act , 2016, Omnibus Legislation: • Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act 32% • Sets overarching provincial direction and establish a new producer responsibility regime. Recycling Council of Ontario • Waste Diversion Transition Act 68% • Replaces Waste Diversion Act, which ensures smooth transition to the individual producer responsibility regime. 13
Resource Recovery Circular Economy Act Regulation to support effective, fair, and open transition from current collective system (IFO) to individual producer responsibility (IPR) model Two Pivotal Changes 1. Assigns liability to producer and allows for flexibility of management of that liability • Direct engagement/education of producers themselves • Incent innovation in environmental design of the package Recycling Council of Ontario and/or the collection and recycling systems • Avoid cost cross-subsidization between material types 2. Establishes Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA): oversight agency focused on compliance • All obligated producers are complying • Ensures all regulatory requirements are met • Collects and audits data to ensure compliance • Monitors compliance to Competition and Consumer Protection Act 14
Resource Recovery Circular Economy Act Intended Outcomes • High environmental performance: • Collection/recovery on a material specific basis: paper, plastics, glass, metals • Accessibility: total provincial coverage • Clear hierarchy of waste reduction and resource recovery that pushes for highest and best use of materials and Recycling Council of Ontario resources • Focused and dedicated oversight to level the playing field amongst producers – free riders, non-compliance • Strictly enforced and audited performance targets and standards • Full transparency and accountability of any/all consumer fees 15
Implementation Differences of IPR • Individual producers must register and provide sales to RPRA • Each producer assigned a registration fee that covers RPRA cost • Producers ‘declare’ at registration how they manage obligations (within collective or other manner) • Freedom for producers join collective (agent) or manage their own obligation • Could be several collectives competing for producer members for one Recycling Council of Ontario material • New performance measures;’ collection coverage, recycling standards • Reporting and auditing: incumbent on producer to verify performance • RPRA oversight and enforcement: • Ensures obligated producers are compliant • Monitors performance closely • Has auditing requirements 16 • Has ability to assign penalties and fines
Wind-down of monopolies established under WDA Recycling Council of Ontario 17
Timelines • June 7, 2019 : Ontario Minister of Environment, Conservation, and Parks assigns Special Advisor on Recycling and Plastic Waste • June / July : Special Advisor Consultations: Recycling Council of Ontario • August 6: Special Advisor submits report • August 15 : Minister directs Stewardship Ontario to begin wind-up planning • June 30, 2020 : Deadline for SO to submit wind-up plan to RPRA • December 31, 2020 : RPRA approval deadline • January 1, 2023 : first communities transition • December 31, 2025 : producer responsibility framework fully implemented 18
Special Advisor’s Special Report Standardization • It should be easier to understand what’s recyclable and what’s not. • A common collection system should have a standard list of materials. Determining eligible sources for Blue Box materials • Ontarians generally associate blue boxes with curbside or depot Recycling Council of Ontario collection, however most communities includes multi-residential buildings, some businesses, and parks and other public spaces. • Transition must consider whether and when it makes sense for producers to be responsible for Blue Box services beyond curbside or depot collection. Setting effective diversion targets • Regulated and enforceable targets are necessary to set a level playing-field and ensure that the Blue Box system strives to achieve meaningful environmental outcomes. 19
Special Advisor’s Special Report Promoting increased diversion from disposal (landfill and EFW) • What goes in the Blue Box should be reused or recycled – and not go to landfill. • Producer-run blue box system must motivate producers to maximize reuse and recycling, while leaving room for innovative ways to divert emerging and problematic materials from landfill. Thinking bigger than the Blue Box Recycling Council of Ontario • The transition is an opportunity for additional actions to increase waste diversion, reduce litter, and build a recycling economy in Ontario. 20
Jo-Anne St.Godard Executive Director 416.657.2797 ext. 3 Recycling Council of Ontario joanne@rco.on.ca RCO.on.ca RCO.on.ca/Membership /company/Recycling- /RecyclingCouncilofOntario /RecyclingCouncilofOntario @RCOntario Council-of-Ontario 21
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