In a recent interview with Recycling Product News, Andrew Horsman of Ontario Tire Stewardship (OTS) discussed the wind-down of the province’s current tire recycling program.
In the Q&A, the organization’s Executive Director outlined what will happen to end-of-life tires in Canada’s most populous province as a result of the dissolution of OTS by December 2018.
OTS, a not-for-profit organization, has successfully managed Ontario’s tire program since 2009. Its mandate has been to properly manage the province’s end-of-life of tires, celebrating the recycling of 100 million tires under its watch earlier this year.
The changes occurring in Ontario began with the provincial government’s November 2016 introduction of Bill 151, the Waste Free Ontario Act, which includes the Waste Diversion Transition Act and the Resource Recovery & Circular Economy Act. The 2016 legislation introduced a new producer responsibility framework that would make producers individually responsible and accountable for their end-of-life products and packaging.
OTS’ wind-up plan must be submitted by November 30, 2017 to the province’s Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA), an entity created under the new producer responsibility framework.
A key focus of the OTS wind-up plan will be engagement and meaningful communications with tire recycling stakeholders to help ensure minimal impacts leading up to and during the change.
Want more information?
Read Mr. Horsman’s full interview with Recycling Product News at: