Extended producer responsibility recycling in Kawartha Lakes begins April 1, 2024

Kawartha Lakes – As of April 1, 2024, residential recycling collection in Kawartha Lakes will be provided by Circular Materials under a new province-wide system that shifts the responsibility of recycling programs to the producers of recycling waste (packaging).

The municipality will no longer provide recycling collection or recycling customer service to the community, those services will now be the responsibility of Circular Materials and the collector they’ve hired for recycling collection in Kawartha Lakes, Miller Waste.

Please note, at this time, there are no changes in recycling services for residents. Your recycling collection will remain the same day and there won’t be any difference as to what you can or can’t recycle.

Blue box (container) and green box (paper/fibre) recycling will continue to be collected on alternating weeks on the same collection day that residents are already accustomed to.

For recycling collection and processing services in Kawartha Lakes, Circular Materials has hired Miller Waste, the same company that the municipality was already using for recycling curbside collection and processing. By utilizing the same recycling collector that the municipality was already using, Circular Materials isn’t expecting any major issues as the municipality transitions to extended producer responsibility (EPR) recycling.

Starting April 1, 2024 please contact Miller Waste for inquiries related to missed pick ups, bin replacements, or general recycling questions:

• Phone: 1-888-557-4711
• Email: kawarthalakes@millerwaste.ca

Rest assured, no changes are coming to our Recycle Coach mobile app. Residents with the app will still be provided with a personalized waste and recycling schedule right at their fingertips. They’ll continue to receive notifications for waste and recycling collection changes, pick-up delays, and upcoming special collection days through the app. The app also has a built in “What Goes Where” tool to help residents better sort their waste and recycling. Become a better recycler by downloading the Recycle Coach app on your mobile device today.

Moving forward, for recycling collection and service information, residents are asked to go to the Kawartha Lakes section of the Circular Materials website:  www.circularmaterials.ca/kawarthalakes.

Learn more about extended producer responsibility recycling on our EPR webpage: www.kawarthalakes.ca/EPR

About Circular Materials

Circular Materials is a national not-for-profit organization that builds efficient and effective recycling systems where materials are collected, recycled and returned to producers to use as recycled content in new packaging and paper. As the administrator of Ontario’s common collection system, Circular Materials is responsible for operating the new system for blue box materials. It is committed to increasing recycling rates across Ontario and ensuring more materials are looped into the circular economy, benefiting both people and the environment.

Visit www.circularmaterials.ca to learn more.

About extended producer responsibility (EPR)

Extended producer responsibility (EPR), is a policy approach in which producers – the businesses that supply packaging and paper – are responsible for the end-of-life management of their materials. In 2021, the Ontario government released the Blue Box Regulation that shifts the financial and operational responsibility of recycling programs to producers. In this new EPR framework, producers become financially and operationally responsible for collecting and recycling the blue box materials that they produced.

Historically, Ontario’s blue box programs were operated by municipalities that were responsible for paying about half of the costs of the program, with producers responsible for the other half. Now, under the Blue Box Regulation, Ontario is transitioning to a new model where producers – the organizations that produce the products and packaging – are 100% responsible for operating and funding the program.

Transition to extended producer responsibility is taking place between 2023 and 2025, with the new framework to fully be in place on January 1, 2026. For more background information on the program visit the Environmental Registry of Ontario website.

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