TORONTO – July 1 will mark the one-year milestone since Circular Materials, a national not-for-profit producer-led organization, kick-started Ontario’s transition to extended producer responsibility (EPR) for packaging and paper material – the first step towards enhanced recycling across the province.
“This underscores Circular Materials’ commitment to technological advancements and strategic innovation that will help to enhance and harmonize recycling across the province,” states a recent press release from the organization.
EPR represents a fundamental change in which producers – the businesses supplying paper and packaging to residents – take responsibility of funding and managing the end-of-life management of materials.
As the administrator of Ontario’s common collection system, Circular Materials is responsible for operating this new EPR system for blue box materials.
Through strategic investments and innovative solutions, Circular Materials is dedicated to advancing the blue box system and fostering environmental stewardship across Ontario.
“Our commitment to responsible resource management and collaboration with stakeholders underscores our efforts to build a system centered around optimizing the recycling system for Ontarians,” the release states.
Optimizing the recycling system includes leveraging technological advancements that will modernize the system and play a pivotal role in enhancing efficiency and accuracy.
Circular Materials officials say innovations such as AI-enabled cameras and optical sorters equipped with advanced sensors will revolutionize recycling collection and sorting.
“These technological innovations offer unparalleled precision and improved efficiency while simultaneously reducing contamination levels. Transparency will be improved through data from material audits, centralized administration, and enhancements to supply chain system design – all critical for enhancing the recycling system,” the release states.
Historically, Ontario’s Blue Box program was operated by municipalities and First Nations communities which were responsible for paying about half of the costs of the program, with producers responsible for the other half. Under the new Blue Box Regulation, producers will be responsible for fully operating and funding the program.
This transition to EPR is taking place between 2023 and 2025, with full EPR implementation across Ontario starting Jan. 1, 2026.
“Circular Materials is pleased to lead Ontario’s journey towards establishing a streamlined recycling framework that will deliver tangible results and benefit residents, communities, and the environment,” stated Circular Materials CEO Allen Langdon.
“Starting in 2026, Ontarians can expect the implementation of a convenient, consistent, and effective recycling system that will improve recycling rates and drive positive change for generations to come,” Langdon added.
Starting in 2026, Ontarians can expect to see a standardized list of accepted recyclable materials throughout Ontario, ensuring uniformity across all communities.
The press release states Circular Materials is committed to ensuring a “stronger and more effective blue box framework” that will promote greater innovations in recycling technologies and a circular economy where materials are collected, recycled, and returned to producers for use as recycled content in new products and packaging.
The process of returning materials directly to producers through EPR, is a unique approach not yet implemented anywhere else in the world, officials stress.
This new process will be piloted this year and has been made possible through extensive collaborative partnerships across the supply chain, which Circular Materials has spearheaded in the last 12 months in Ontario and nationwide, the release states.
On July 1, 2023, Circular Materials kick-started Ontario’s transition to EPR for packaging. The shift was a result of Ontario’s Blue Box Regulation which came into effect June 2021.
Over 400 blue box programs in Ontario are expected to transition to EPR in 2026. Learn more at circularmaterials.ca.
– Globe Newswire
