Image of hazardous waste by Dirk Rabe from Pixabay

Hazardous & Special Products (i.e. Municipal Hazardous & Special Waste/Household Hazardous Waste)

Resource • January 13, 2021

March 15, 2021

In February 2021, the Ministry released the proposed producer responsibility regulation for Hazardous and Special Products (HSP). The proposed draft regulation would require producers of HSP, such as plants, pesticides, solvents, oil filters, antifreeze and pressurized containers, to collect, manage or promote the recycling or proper disposal of these products at end-of-life.

The operation of the current Municipal Hazardous and Special Waste (MHSW) program for all designated materials except single-use batteries is to cease on June 30, 2021. The new rules are expected to take effect July 1, 2021, provided that the regulation is finalized and in place by then.

Municipal governments should be well informed about the tonnages the programs collect for the purposes of providing evidence-based data into this process. After the program saw a major retraction in 2010, municipalities have been funding a significant portion of the program. This has included the events and drop-off depots to ensure that residents are keeping the materials out of disposal.

The graphs below illustrate these costs:

Responsibility based on Lab Pack Analysis for Misc. Organics

Responsibility based on Lab Pack Analysis for Pesticides & Fertilizers

Responsibility based on Lab Pack Analysis for Aerosols

In the spirit of full producer responsibility, it will be important for municipalities to advocate that improving environmental outcomes can only be accomplished with a broad list of materials. Comments are being drafted by the Municipal 3Rs Collaborative and have been circulated to the sector for input and to inform local submissions.

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