Waste Management Planning & Steering Committee. Multi-Residential Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Program Expansion

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1 Page 1 REPORT TO: Waste Management Planning & Steering Committee MEETING DATE: Monday, SUBJECT: Multi-Residential Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Program Expansion RECOMMENDATIONS That this Committee recommends to the Public Works Committee: 1. That a two year extension of the existing Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) collection program from eligible multi-residential properties BE APPROVED, at no cost to the Region; and 2. That the Director of Legal and Court Services BE DIRECTED to prepare an amending agreement to the collection of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment with Ontario Electronic Stewardship, to reflect a two year extension under the same terms and conditions. KEY FACTS A pilot program (Pilot) to collect WEEE from eligible multi-residential properties, implemented in April 2015, has resulted in enhanced collection services for tenants of participating multi-residential properties. Currently, 26 multi-residential buildings in select municipalities participate in the WEEE collection pilot program 6,181 kilograms of WEEE has been diverted from landfills through this Pilot from April 7, January 7, 2016 Under contract with Niagara Region, Ontario Electronic Stewardship, provides the collection services at no cost. CONSIDERATIONS Financial Under the current collection agreement with Ontario Electronic Stewardship (OES), there are no payments or costs incurred by the Niagara Region and OES is fully responsible for their own expenses in providing the collection services. OES will continue to provide collection services for an additional two years under the current terms and conditions. OES is an industry-led, not-for-profit organization that ensures

2 Page 2 end-of-life electronics are safely collected, and handled in an environmentally-sound manner. Further information concerning OES can be found at The cost of the promotional materials, including posters, information sheets, door hangers and tabletop displays to advise residents of the new collection service for the duration of the Pilot was under $2,000. It is estimated that budget implication for additional promotional material over the next two years will be $1,000. Corporate Staff will work with Legal and Court Services to amend the existing agreement with OES, to reflect a two year extension under the same terms and conditions. Governmental Partners Not applicable. Public and/or Service Users This service is recommended to be available to all residents of multi-residential properties who currently participate in the Region s recycling program. ANALYSIS Currently, 26 multi-residential buildings in select municipalities across Niagara Region participate in the WEEE Pilot. From April 7, 2015 to January 7, 2016, 6,181 kilograms of WEEE have been collected from participating properties and diverted from landfills. Participating properties are located in five municipalities: St. Catharines, Pelham, Welland, Grimsby and Thorold, as outlined in Appendix I. Municipalities were chosen to participate in the Pilot based on their proximity to main highways throughout Niagara, in order for OES to efficiently visit all participating properties and collect acceptable materials. Niagara Region staff will continue to work with OES to expand the list of eligible properties under the two-year extension. A WEEE curbside collection pilot program was initiated for residents of Low Density Residential properties beginning in January of This pilot collection program was cancelled due to excessive scavenging. Scavenging at multi-residential properties has been mitigated by selecting properties with indoor recycling areas, or providing multiresidential buildings with lockable carts and/or steel containers to store WEEE. Participating properties are visited by Region staff following the implementation of the Pilot to inspect the carts for signs of scavenging or contamination. To date, no

3 Page 3 scavenging has been recorded or observed at participating properties, and contamination has been minimal. A maximum rate of 5% contamination is allowed through OES to ensure collection, and no containers have been reported as exceeding this limit. Properties that agreed to participate in the Pilot received education on acceptable materials in the WEEE program and where the collection containers were located in their building. Residents were notified of the new collection service through door-todoor visits or open house sessions with Region staff. In some cases, unstaffed lobby displays were preferred by building staff. Properties also received promotional materials such as posters, door hangers, table-top displays and information sheets to remind residents of the new program in their building. As per PW , Region staff recommended a one-year no cost WEEE collection pilot study at a subset of the Region s multi-residential buildings similar to those of Richmond Hill and Markham. At that time, both of these municipalities were not charged for transportation or processing of their WEEE and both received rebate payments of between $0.07 and $0.10 per pound. Since then, due to the changing landscape of electronics processing including fluctuating markets and decreased rates of return, Richmond Hill no longer offers multi-residential WEEE collection. Instead, residents are directed to Community Environmental Centres as an alternative. The City of Markham now pays a private service provider for the collection and transportation of WEEE materials to the processor, and also no longer receives rebate payments. Municipalities that have entered into a partnership with the OES, such as Durham Region, have been able to continue to offer a no cost collection service for multiresidential properties. Further, the release of Bill 151, the proposed Waste-Free Ontario Act and related draft Strategy for a Waste-Free Ontario, provides a framework to place full responsibility on producers for their packaging and products at end of life. Details of potential changes are to be developed under future regulations and will target areas for greater diversion including the designation of additional WEEE. If the legislation passes, the Province anticipates that changes will be rolled out over the next two to five years, beginning in At such time, once the new responsibilities of producers and municipalities have been determined, Staff will return to Committee to provide an update and recommendations regarding the future of the multi-residential WEEE collection program. In conclusion, staff recommends that the existing multi-residential WEEE collection program, in partnership with OES, be extended for an additional two years under the same terms and conditions of the existing agreement.

4 Page 4 ALTERNATIVES REVIEWED Given that the two-year extension of the multi-residential WEEE collection program can be delivered at no cost, and further WEEE materials can be diverted from disposal, staff did not consider the cancellation of this program. ORIGINS OF REPORT Staff s request to implement a one-year pilot program for the collection and recycling of WEEE material at a subset of the Region s multi-residential buildings was approved as per PW and staff was directed to report back to the Waste Management Planning & Steering Committee (WMPSC) with the results of the pilot program. OTHER PERTINENT REPORTS PW July 17, 2012, Curbside Collection Pilot for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) PW July 2, 2013, Management of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) SUBMITTED BY: Ron Tripp, P.Eng., Commissioner Public Works Department APPROVED BY: Harry Schlange Chief Administrative Officer This report was prepared by Alexis Stupich, Multi-residential and IC&I Waste Diversion Coordinator, and reviewed by Lucy McGovern, Program Manager Waste Management Services; Allison Tyldesley, Associate Director Collection & Diversion Operations Waste Management Services; and Catherine Habermebl, Director Waste Management Services. APPENDICES Appendix I Appendix II Participating Properties Summary of WEEE Collection Services in Other Municipalities

5 Page 5 Appendix I: Participating Multi-Residential Properties Table 1. Multi-residential buildings currently participating in Niagara s WEEE collection pilot program. Property Address Municipality 45 Pelham Town Square Pelham 55 Pelham Town Square Pelham 61 Ormond St S Thorold 479 Carlton St St Catharines 14 Centre St St Catharines 15 Gale Crescent St Catharines 215 Glenridge St Catharines 27 Leaside Drive St Catharines 33 Leaside Drive St Catharines 39 Leaside Drive St Catharines 49 Leaside Drive St Catharines 60 Windward St St Catharines 56 Windward St St Catharines 64 Windward St St Catharines 80 Rockwood Ave St Catharines 87 Rockwood Ave St Catharines 97 Rockwood Ave St Catharines 100 Woodrow St St Catharines 211 King St Welland 579 Clare Ave Welland 436 Scott St St Catharines 438 Scott St St Catharines 440 Scott St St Catharines 442 Scott St St Catharines 2 Rossmore Ave Grimsby 2 Lighthouse Rd St Catharines

6 Page 6 Appendix II: Summary of Multi-residential WEEE Collection Services in other Municipalities Table 2. Summary of WEEE collection programs in comparable municipalities. Municipality Niagara Multi-Res WEEE Program Yes (Pilot program) Provider OES for transportation and processing Barrie No N/A N/A Durham Yes OES for transportation and processing. Essex- Windsor No N/A N/A Halton No N/A N/A Hamilton No N/A N/A London No N/A N/A Markham Yes (Pilot program) Private third party for transportation and processing Ottawa No N/A N/A Peel No N/A N/A Richmond Hill Discontinued. N/A N/A Cost/ Revenue No cost for transport, no rebate for material collected. No cost for transport of materials. Rebate offered for material collected. City pays third party for transport. No rebate for material collected. Simcoe No N/A N/A Vaughan No N/A N/A Waterloo No N/A N/A