Environment Minister Jim Bradley introduced a new Waste
Reduction Act (the "Act") on June 6, 2013 as part of
a new Waste Reduction Strategy. If the bill is passed the new
legislation will replace the existing Waste Diversion Act,
2002. The legislation proposes two major changes from its
predecessor. First, the proposed Act is specifically aimed at
increasing the diversion rate of the industrial, commercial, and
institutional (IC&I) sector. Second, it shifts the
responsibility of managing the cost of recycling from the consumer
to the producer.
The new legislation will address a number of priorities:
- Individual Producer Responsibility -
Individual producers will be responsible for managing their
product's end-of-life by financing the cost, rather than
passing it to the consumer at the point of sale. Producers will
also be subject to waste diversion targets, standards, service
standards, promotion and education requirements, and administrative
penalties.
