New Pilot Topic: Recycling Council of British Columbia

The Recycling Council of British Columbia, on behalf of the Ministry of Environment, is using PlaceSpeak as an opportunity to start a conversation with municipalities, waste and recycling related companies both non-profit and private, as well as the general public in British Columbia.

The RCBC recognizes that we live in a large province and have busy schedules, so making a meeting may not be an option for some. To address that, the council approached PlaceSpeak about using our platform as a pilot project for their online public and stakeholder engagement activities.

Their goal is to engage online with stakeholders about the decision by the Recycling Regulation to include Printed Paper & Packing (PPP) as a new product category requiring the development of a stewardship plan, to be designed by November 2012 and  to be implemented by May 2014.  They are also looking to provide an opportunity for:

• the Ministry of Environment to describe and explain the regulatory amendments to the Recycling Regulation regarding packaging and printed paper, and
• producers to get information prior to conducting their formal stewardship plan consultations (expected in the spring of 2012)

“This exercise is precisely the kind of consultation that PlaceSpeak has been created to enable”, says PlaceSpeak founder, Colleen Hardwick (Nystedt). “This is an empowering act that will help build trust between citizens and government, toward the creation of a sustainable stewardship plan.”

You can connect with the RCBC-PPP page HERE.

Background: Printed Paper and Packaging Recycling

The BC Government added Printed Paper and Packaging (PPP) as a new product category under its Recycling Regulation.  The regulation was amended on May 19th, 2011 by adding PPP as a new category, which requires producers of PPP to develop a product stewardship program within 18-months – November 2012.

A 100% industry funded and managed program for packaging in British Columbia means that producers will not only be financially responsible for the costs of managing their post-consumer waste, but also physically responsible for the operational infrastructure to meet their obligations.

The Multi Material British Columbia (MMBC) is a non-for-profit agency established under the British Columbia Society Act formed to represent the producers of PPP in British Columbia.  MMBC will be accountable to develop a plan to be approved by the BC MoE so that producers are able to meet their regulatory requirements by being part of the MMBC program.

The EPR system that is ultimately selected after careful analysis of the options for developing such a program will be 100% funded by producers, with MMBC managing the funds, contracts and all details of the program.