The "Engaging Solutions: Annual Report
2010/2011", tabled by ECO Gord Miller in the Ontario
Legislature on November 29, 2011, finds that the Ontario government
is not doing enough to reduce waste in the province.
It notes that the MOE has developed several solutions to
cut waste, such as imposing a surcharge on waste that is sent to
landfill and requiring retailers to take back products at their
end-of-life.
Yet, the Ontario government has taken little action to
implement these solutions, says the report.
This lack of action can be attributed to, among other
things, the Waste Diversion Act, 2002 failing to make
waste reduction and reuse a priority, says the report.
As a result, the province's overall waste diversion
rate in 2008 was only about 23 per cent, well below the 60 per cent
target that was set for that year, says the report.
To improve Ontario's waste record, the report
recommends that the MOE follow through on its many proposed waste
diversion solutions to ensure that they are implemented.
The MOE should also better educate the public and industry
on the implications and importance of extended producer
responsibility, steward fees and other waste reduction initiatives,
says the report.
"Despite some recent progress, the Environment
Commissioner correctly highlights in his latest report that the
largest barrier for waste reduction and diversion is willingness
for the government to simply act on the numerous proposals it has
brought forward," says Peter Hargreave, director of policy and
strategy with the Ontario Waste Management Association. "With
waste diversion lagging at 23 per cent and with much of our
waste being shipped outside the province for disposal, we are
missing enormous opportunities to increase investment and create
well-paid jobs.
"However, there is good reason to believe the
Environment Commissioner's report may act as a catalyst for the
changes to desperately needed," says Hargreave. "Growing
frustration over the current waste diversion framework has meant
greater collaboration and alignment between the various
stakeholders with most advocating for significant changes to the
current waste diversion framework, including greater accountability
and transparency; measures to deal with IC&I waste; and the
need for producers to be responsible for costs instead of simply
passing it onto consumers."
The report is available at http://www.eco.on.ca/uploads/Reports-Annual/2010_11/Final-English-Bookmarked-2010-AR.pdf
