Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) shifts the burden of waste management from consumers and cities to producers, in this model businesses are responsible for products throughout their lifecycle. With an ultimate goal of incentivizing more sustainable design and waste management practices.
The key players:
- Producers
- Cities and their Haulers
- Residents/Consumers
Producers:
The party most affected by EPR are the producers. It is their responsibility to see each product through its entire lifecycle. Financial obligations include funding the collection, recycling, and disposal of their products after consumers have used them. Typically, this involves paying fees to organization(s) that handle the supply chain for recovering material.
Ideally, this spurs sustainability as producers look to reduce costs incurred for recovering hard-to-recycle items. This could involve using materials that are more easily recyclable or reducing the amount of waste generated.
Above all, producers must comply with regulations set by the regulatory bodies. This will involve reporting the quantities of products placed on the market, the amount of waste generated, and ensuring proper collection and recycling systems are in place. For example, Waves Coffee of British Columbia recently received a $31,000 fine for not having an approved collection and recycling program. Waves Coffee hit with $31K Fine
Cities and their Haulers:
As Cities are often responsible for waste collection and disposal, EPR reduces the financial and logistical burden on cities and shifts it to producers. It may require regulatory oversight, infrastructure adjustments, and increased coordination.
With producers taking responsibility for their products, cities and their haulers can see higher rates of recycling and better management of specific waste streams. EPR can include financial incentives for haulers, where producers pay for the collecting and recycling of certain types of waste. Haulers may benefit from new revenue streams as they participate. Conversely, they may need to adjust their pricing to accommodate the increased recycling or collection responsibilities.
As EPR is focused on recycling (not organics and municipal solid waste) haulers can face logistical challenges as new EPR systems are introduced. As an example, routes that may have previously been collected by a split-body truck may require dedicated trucks for each commodity. They may need to set up new routes or schedules for collections and possibly need to install additional infrastructure (sorting equipment and buildings).
Residents:
As EPR systems roll out, residents may need to adjust to new collection schedules, recycling rules, or additional waste streams. Changes in recycling rules or an “acceptable materials” list will help to create a standardization for the State / Province being managed. Additionally, as EPR is introduced, it may provide recycling access to residents that have never been previously recycled, as universal access is typically a major principle of implementation.
As EPR programs involve producers paying fees to cover the cost of recycling or waste management, residents may notice changes in their typical packaging. Some producers may redesign packaging to increase recyclability, thereby reducing the fees they’re required to pay. Producers that don’t will incur additional costs, and residents may notice these items increasing in price if the costs are passed on.
Producers can expect to see big changes. Businesses will need to adjust the way they operate to fit into EPR legislation, some more than others. As scary as it may be, the outcome means more thought into the sustainability and the lifecycle of products - something that consumers will be looking for. Cities and haulers can expect to face logistical challenges and, potentially, upfront costs. The financial benefit of the program will be seen by both parties with time. For residents, there may be changes in the way they recycle, as well as the logistics of when and where. Residents may see increased costs of goods, especially when packaging is not easily recycled. This is just a drop in the bucket on how EPR can and will affect us all. There will be some growing pains along the way, but the outcome will lead to more products recycled, better and more sustainable practices, and thought about the waste generated by all parties involved.
