The Canadian Beverage Association (CBA) says Ontario needs to introduce a deposit return system for beverage cans and bottles to bring its woeful recycling numbers up.A report published by the Canadian Beverage Association (and researched and written by Eunomia Research & Consulting Inc.) has found that the most effective way for Ontario to achieve a 90% recovery rate for beverage containers is by expanding the province’s existing deposit system operated by The Beer Store, and providing Ontarians with more retail and depot locations to take back bottles and cans to receive a 10-cent refund for each container.All Canadian provinces except Ontario and Manitoba have a deposit-return system (DRS) for non-alcoholic beverage containers. Without a beverage container recycling program, Ontario maintains the country’s lowest non-alcoholic beverage container recovery rate for non-alcoholic beverage containers – which is stalled at 51%, according to the latest estimate provided by Circular Materials. Provinces with DRS programs, like British Columbia and Alberta, have recovery rates ranging from 77% to 85%, along with high levels of consumer support.The report’s findings show that leveraging The Beer Store’s collection system and having grocery stores and other retail locations take back empty beverage containers will create a system that can achieve a recovery rate of 89% and provide a collection location for roughly every 1,600 Ontarians. This system would also include limited depot collection in high-volume locations. The net-cost of this system would be $190 million and would be funded through producer fees.The Government of Ontario concluded the Early Implementation Agreement with The Beer Store on March 28, 2024. That agreement continues the existing deposit system for alcohol containers and creates a new obligation for retail locations that are more than 4,000 square feet to collect empty alcohol containers if there is no Beer Store within five kilometres. A revised Ontario Deposit Return Agreement (ODRP) must be concluded by Oct. 1, 2024. (ICE TORONTO)

Fonte notizia: https://wasterecyclingmag.ca/