Ontario wants input on proposals to reduce waste

The Ontario government is urging the public to provide feedback on proposals to reduce plastic litter and waste and grow the recycling program. A discussion paper has been posted on the Environment Registry and all are welcome to comment on it.

Saultstar.com
March 13, 2019
Elaine Della-Mattia

Banning single-use plastics, diverting food and organic waste from landfills and harmonizing blue box collections are all options the Ontario government is examining to reduce the amount of garbage heading into landfills.

A discussion paper has been posted on the Environment Registry for a 45-day period asking the public for their feedback on proposals to reduce plastic litter and waste and increase the province’s diversion rate.  Comments will be accepted until April 20.

Susan Hamilton-Beach, director of public works and transportation, said the Reducing Litter and Waste discussion paper raises lots of good points.

“We saw similar ideas with the previous government and we’re not sure what changes will happen yet under the new government and how that will affect our municipality,” Hamilton-Beach said.

She said the discussion paper and the issues have been on the city’s radar for some time.

Ontarians generate about one tonne of waste per person each year but recycling efforts have stalled at about the 30 per cent mark and have remained there for about 15 years, the description of the policy proposal reads on the Environment Registry.

In addition, 60 per cent of food and organic waste in Ontario is sent to landfills, emitting methane -- a potent greenhouse gas -- when it decomposes.

The Ontario government is considering an option to ban single-use plastics like plastic straws and cutlery.

Estimates indicate that about 10,000 tonnes of plastic debris enter the Great Lakes each year, the provincial statists show.

The City of Sault Ste. Marie has already eliminated plastic straws from concession stands at the GFL Memorial Gardens, replacing them with paper straws. The move is expected to be followed at the city’s other concession facilities.

The change came last fall after several major businesses stopped offering plastic straws to customers.

Paper straws take two to six weeks to disintegrate, a much quicker method than the decades required for the decomposition of plastic straws.

Hamilton-Beach said it would be impossible to reduce all single use plastics but an increased awareness may reduce volumes that end up in the landfills.

The province is also considering a deposit return system for plastic bottles and containers, a tactic used in other Canadian jurisdictions.

Hamilton-Beach said that there are no indications whether the burden would be placed on the municipality or the producers.

“The infrastructure and the costs required to do those collections would also need to considered,” she said.

Many of the producers of the materials may also be companies from abroad and that poses questions and challenges on who would be responsible for the recycling and what enforcement methods are available for offshore producers.

Other options under review include shifting more of the burden of blue box recycling programs to the producers, which could save municipalities over $125 million annually, the province states.

It could also encourage product producers and packagers to find new and innovative cost-effective ways to recycle their products and lower costs for consumers.

“Municipalities have had a lot of practice with recycling and we do it fairly well,” Hamilton-Beach said. “It may be a challenge for producers to take over the system.”

Currently, each municipality sets its own requirements for blue box collected items but Ontario is also considering harmonizing the blue box system and expanding it to include appliances, power tools, rechargeable batteries, fluorescent bulbs and clothing.

Hamilton Beach said the issues of quality and market availability would also need to be considered.

“Sault Ste. Marie is one of the only municipalities that have a two-stream collection system in Ontario and because of that we produce a high quality product that is sought after by many markets,” she said. “A unified system may not work as well for us.”

The previous government also targeted 2025 as the year for municipalities to launch organic composting.

While Sault Ste. Marie ran a successful pilot project many years ago, the quantity for a community this size is not there to develop a costly program, Hamilton-Beach said.

“What we suggested at the time is that any required program like that be funded,” she said. “We’re not sure what is going to happen with those target dates or the organic program right now.”

Overall, the province’s discussion paper outlines eight key areas for action. They include preventing and reducing litter in neighbourhoods and parks, increasing diversion, making producers responsible for waste generated from product packaging, reducing food waste, reducing plastic waste, providing rules for compostable products and packaging, recovering the value of resources in waste and supporting sustainable end markets for Ontario’s waste.

Environment Minister Rod Phillips highlighted in a release the importance of ongoing collaboration and consultation with municipalities to ensure the province’s waste reduction and diversion goals are reached.

“We know Ontarians want to do their part to reduce litter and waste, whether at home, at work, or on the go,” Phillips said. “There are so many great ideas out there in the province that we want to build on to reduce waste, divert more of it way from landfills and get our diversion rate moving in the right direction again.”