On November 29, 2018 the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks released
Preserving and Protecting our Environment for Future Generations: A Made-in-Ontario
Environment Plan to help protect and conserve our air, land and water, address litter
and reduce waste, increase our resilience to climate change and help all of us do our
part to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Recognizing that true environmental stewardship starts with real action on the
environmental challenges we face close to home, the Made-in-Ontario Environment
Plan outlined a number of commitments aimed at reducing litter and waste in our
communities including:
• Reducing and diverting food and organic waste from households and
businesses.
• Reducing plastic waste.
• Reducing litter in our neighbourhoods and parks.
• Increasing opportunities for the people of Ontario to participate in waste
reduction efforts.
We are committed to make producers responsible for the waste generated from their
products and packaging, and to outline actions to explore how to recover the value of
resources in waste, provide clear rules for compostable products and packaging, and
support competitive and sustainable end-markets for Ontario’s waste.
These changes will enable the province to move forward with a clear, comprehensive
and outcome-based approach to reducing litter and waste in our communities and
increase recycling, while keeping this province clean and beautiful for future
generations. It will not only allow the province to build on progress that has already
been made but provide for real and practical solutions that are aligned with a new vision
for Ontario; one where hardworking taxpayers are protected and respected, and where
our actions produce concrete and tangible results for Ontarians in their every day lives.
Through this discussion paper, we intend to show the steps we will take to make waste
reduction, reuse, and recycling easier for the people of Ontario, not only at home or at
work, but also throughout our communities.
2.0 MOVE ONTARIO TOWARDS A MORE SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
The people of Ontario have long-embraced opportunities to reduce and recycle waste
both at home and on the go. Many of Ontario’s municipalities and businesses have also
shown leadership in finding innovative ways to reduce the waste they send to landfill. londonessays.com
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Ontario is a leader in recycling, being the birthplace of the Blue Box Program. Ontario
offered the first curbside recycling program in the world, beginning in its infancy in
Kitchener in 1981, and growing into a world class system that is now replicated in
hundreds of jurisdictions around the world.
We have made progress, but we still have a long way to go.
Ontario generates nearly a tonne of waste per person each year. Our overall diversion
rate has stalled at 30 per cent over the past 15 years. This means that 70 per cent of
our waste materials continue to end up in landfills.
Ontario’s waste stream is composed of 4.7 million tonnes of residential waste and 6.9
million tonnes of Industrial, Commercial and Institutional (IC&I) waste. This means that
residential waste makes up 40 per cent of the waste stream while 60 per cent of
Ontario’s waste comes from the IC&I sector. The residential sector does a better job of
diverting waste at nearly 50 per cent while the IC&I sector diverts just 17 per cent.
Ontario’s Residential and IC&I Waste Management
Residential Waste (left): Managed by municipalities and includes waste generated by residents in
single-family homes, some apartments and some small businesses. Mix of mandatory and voluntary
diversion programs.
Business Waste (right): Managed by the private sector and includes food processing sites,
manufacturing facilities, schools, hospitals, offices, restaurants, retail sites and some apartments. These
diversion programs are largely voluntary.
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Sources: Statistics Canada, Waste Management Industry Survey 2017 for non-residential data; Resource
Productivity and Recovery Authority, Datacall data and residential diversion rates for residential data.
Data on IC&I organic waste from 2018 study prepared for MECP by 2cg.
Sending waste to landfill is economically inefficient and unsustainable. It puts a strain on
our environment by taking up valuable land resources that could be used more
productively. When we create waste, in our manufacturing processes and in the
services we deliver and in our homes, we’re not making full use of the scarce natural
resource
s that power our economy. By reducing and diverting waste from landfill we can
make our economy more productive. We know that every 1,000 tonnes of waste
diverted from landfill generates seven full-time jobs, $360,000 in wages and more than
$700,000 in Gross Domestic Product (GDP).1
Furthermore, landfills release methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Reducing our
reliance on landfills is an important part of meeting the greenhouse gas emission target
outlined in our Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan.
Sending waste to landfill also impacts local communities. Municipalities, often in rural
areas, are hosting landfills that accept waste from locations far beyond their
communities, often with limited say in their approvals.
The people of Ontario are on board with these changes. Residents, businesses,
institutions and governments alike are moving towards viewing waste as a resource that
has value and can be integrated back into the economy. This mindset recognizes the
need to manage our resources more effectively to build Ontario’s competitiveness and
protect our environment.
To achieve this change, we need to reduce waste before it is made, increase the range
of materials we divert from landfill, and make diversion and recycling easier for the
people of Ontario. This will require affordable solutions, both provincial and local, that
create economic benefits and jobs, allow us to use our natural resources more
efficiently, and increase the competitiveness and productivity of our businesses and
industries.
We want to move towards an Ontario where we produce less waste, maximize the
resources from waste through reuse, recycling, or other means such as thermal
treatment, and ultimately send less of our waste to landfill. Less waste means more
sustainable use of our resources, less litter in our communities, parks and urban
spaces, and a cleaner, healthier environment for all Ontarians to enjoy now and for
years to come.
1 Conference Board of Canada, The Value of Garbage Greater Waste Diversion Would Boost Ontario’s Economy,
May 29, 2014 and Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks.
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Our goal is for an Ontario where we strive to decrease the amount of waste going
to landfill, increase the province’s overall diversion rate, and reduce greenhouse
gases from the waste sector. This goal will guide our work over the next four years.
The province will continue to mark its progress towards the aspirational interim targets
of 30 per cent diversion by 2020, which has now been achieved, 50 per cent diversion
by 2030, and 80 per cent diversion by 2050.
Below are the proposed steps we will take to meet our goal. We need to reduce the
amount of waste we generate, divert more waste from landfill and better recover and
manage the remaining waste so it can be integrated back into the economy, which will
support the health of both Ontario’s environment and communities
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