New recyclability labelling and plastics registry consultations announced

The Minister of Environment and Climate Change, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, this week has announced the next step in delivering on Canada’s commitments on plastic waste and pollution by launching two significant consultations:

• Develop rules for recyclability and composability labelling: The labelling rules would prohibit the use of the chasing-arrows symbol and other recyclability claims on plastic products unless at least 80 percent of Canadians have access to recycling systems that accept and have reliable end markets for these products. This is intended to drive improvements towards more sustainable packaging design, better inform consumer choices, and to reinforce public trust in recycling.
• Establish a federal plastics registry for producers of plastic products: The key objective of the registry would be to collect data on the life cycle of plastics in Canada. This registry would support the provinces and territories that are making plastic producers responsible for their plastic waste by requiring companies to report on the quantity of plastic products they place on the Canadian market and how these products are diverted from landfills at the end of their lives.

These consultations from the federal government are in direct connection with ongoing efforts to bring forward new measures to better manage plastic waste and meet Canada’s goal of zero plastic waste by 2030. RCC will be reviewing these consultations in detail and will be engaging members for feedback in the weeks to come.

The consultations are open for feedback from stakeholders until October 7, 2022.