CVRD Provides Clarity on New Recycling Initiative and the Garbage/Recycling Collection Referendum
As residents prepare for the November 16th roadside garbage and recycling collection referendum, the Comox Valley Regional District (CVRD) wants to ensure residents know more about the impact that a new provincial product stewardship plan for recycling may have on the proposed collection program for the electoral areas.
Households are already familiar with product stewardship programs (such as the Return-It depots) that collect materials like deposit beverage containers, paint, batteries and electronics. These programs make producers and consumers responsible for recycling products that are no longer useful. In April 2013, the BC Ministry of Environment approved a new product stewardship plan for packaging and printed paper (PPP) from residential sources. Examples include non-deposit food and beverage containers, cereal boxes, plastic wrap, Styrofoam packaging, cosmetic and hygiene product containers, plastic containers, cardboard, newspapers, magazines and flyers.
A newly formed not-for-profit agency, Multi-Material British Columbia (MMBC), will manage the collection and processing of PPP materials. MMBC is currently working with local governments and producers on the groundwork for the plan’s implementation.
Earlier in 2013, MMBC offered local governments that have been providing residential curbside recycling programs since November 2012, a collection incentive to continue providing PPP curbside collection under the new plan. The proposed CVRD roadside garbage and recycling collection program for the electoral areas, which is the subject of the November 16th referendum, is not eligible for incentives in the initial rollout, but could apply after the new product stewardship plan is implemented.
However, in Royston the CVRD acquired the service from the Royston Improvement District in 2010 and therefore is eligible for the MMBC incentive which could be applied to recover a portion of the collection costs. Once the new product stewardship plan is implemented, it is anticipated that the financial incentives will reduce the fees charged to the residents by the CVRD for garbage and recycling collection with no change to the current pick-up schedule. The start date of the MMBC plan isn’t confirmed yet, however the CVRD is committed to keeping residents updated as information becomes available. For further information on Multi-Material British Columbia, visit www.multimaterialbc.ca and for details on the upcoming roadside collection referendum refer to the CVRD’s website, www.comoxvalleyrd.ca/vote.
The Comox Valley Regional District is a federation of three electoral areas and three municipalities providing sustainable services for residents and visitors to the area. The members of the regionaldistrict work collaboratively on services for the benefit of the diverse urban and rural areas of the Comox Valley.