Canada Proposes Federal Plastics Registry to Tackle Pollution – GWC Mag

Canada is seeking new ways to tackle plastic pollution with a new idea to create a Federal Plastics Registry with the aim of achieving a circular economy.

The idea is currently being floated as a consultation that is open to Canadians and all interested parties until Feb. 13, 2024. The registry would address plastic pollution through a tool to monitor and track plastic from the time it is produced to its end of life. 

The plastics monitored in the registry would include most plastics placed on the Canadian market, including packaging, single-use and disposable products, construction, transportation, home appliances, electronics and electrical equipment, tires, textiles, fishing and aquaculture, and agriculture and horticulture.

The registry idea comes as Canadians threw away 4.4 million tons of plastic waste in 2019. Of that, just 9% was recycled.

Plastic Tracking

Producers would be required to report annually on the quantity and types of plastic they place on the Canadian market, how the plastic moves through the economy, and how it’s managed at the end of its life. The registry would collect this data and monitor plastic in the economy over time, with the Canadian government using the information to measure progress toward zero plastic waste.

“Canadians are demanding action to tackle the plastic waste and pollution crisis, and the federal government will continue to act,” the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, minister of environment and climate change, said in a statement. “The Federal Plastics Registry is an important tool that will help track and manage plastics across the economy. It will support provinces and territories in making producers responsible for their plastic waste at end of life and help move Canada toward a circular economy for plastics.”

Canada’s Climate Fight

In addition, the registry would make the information openly accessible to all Canadians and businesses through a new reporting platform. The Canadian government also sees the registry as a way to harmonize all plastics data across the country and complement existing reporting requirements, such as provincial and territorial extended producer responsibility programs.

The country published a consultation paper in July 2022, and a technical paper in April 2023 focused on the approach and technical details of the registry for public consultation. Feedback from these papers was considered.

While the registry would track and monitor plastics in Canada, plastic pollution is an international challenge, and the government of Canada is also examining how to work with international partners to develop a legally binding approach.

The consultation for the registry comes as companies in the country are cracking down on their own single-use plastics.

FIJI recently said it will transition its 500-milliliter and 330-milliliter bottles to 100% recycled plastic in Canadian markets, replacing about 70% of the company’s bottle volume with recycled material. The company has a goal of transitioning all of its bottles to rPET, or recycled plastic, by 2025.

The country is also underway with a plan to reduce fossil fuel emissions, releasing a draft plan to cap pollution caused by the oil and gas sector in the country.