Waste Diversion Ontario's Scrap Tire Diversion Program Plan

This notice was originally posted in the old Environmental Registry under number RA04E0018.

Description of regulation

This Notice is about Waste Diversion Ontario's proposed waste diversion program for used tires. Waste Diversion Ontario submitted the program proposal to the Minister of the Environment for approval under the Waste Diversion Act, 2002 in response to the minister's request of March 20, 2003. Subsection 26(4) of the Act deems this program to be a proposal under consideration by the ministry for a regulation under a prescribed act.

The proposed waste diversion program for used tires will be implemented only after the program is approved by the minister and Ontario Tire Stewardship is designated by a minister's regulation as the industry funding organization.

The proposed program consists of several operational parts and administrative procedures to better manage used tires in the province. The program plan includes the following:

1. a $4.00 non-refundable dedicated Tire Stewardship Fee (TSF) which will be remitted by retailers for each new highway tire that is sold
2. definition of steward: stewards are defined as retailers as they manage the original sale of the new tire and collect the consumers' scrap tire for eventual disposal
3. processing incentives to promote the production of higher value added materials from scrap tires
4. mechanisms to fund research and development projects to develop and expand the range of value-added end uses for which scrap tires may be employed (such as civil engineering, sport surfaces, rubberized asphalt, automotive parts etc.) and to promote tire processing companies in Ontario
5. a program to manage the registration and manifesting of scrap tire movement from generators to processors which will help to eliminate the illegal dumping of scrap tires
6. the creation of a network of retail and municipal collection points, easily accessible to consumers, that will result in higher diversion rates
7. a 5-year plan to eliminate the estimated 5-6 million stockpiled tires in the Province through a process that could include Tire Derived Fuel (TDF) application

Other information

The Waste Diversion Act, 2002, provides a framework for the development of programs to promote the reduction, reuse or recycling of wastes.

The Act established Waste Diversion Ontario as a permanent, non-government corporation with a mandate to develop, implement and operate waste diversion programs. The Minister of the Environment may designate a material as waste under the Act and may require Waste Diversion Ontario to develop a diversion program for that waste, which may include reduction, reuse and recycling activities.

Waste Diversion Ontario must develop the program in accordance with the Act and the minister's program request. Once developed, Waste Diversion Ontario must submit the program to the minister for approval. The minister may approve the program or not. If the minister approves the program, then the minister makes a regulation designating Ontario Tire Stewardship as the industry funding organization to operate the program in conjunction with Waste Diversion Ontario. Waste Diversion Ontario and Ontario Tire Stewardship must then implement the program.