Province Passes New Waste-Free Ontario Act

As the Chair of Public Works & Infrastructure, earlier this spring I was pleased to represent the City of Toronto before the Standing Committee on Social Policy at the Provincial Legislative Assembly for consideration of Bill 151, Waste-Free Ontario Act.

Every year in Ontario, more than eight million tonnes of waste is sent to landfill. Greenhouse gas emissions have also risen by 25 percent between 1990 and 2012 as more and more waste is disposed of in landfills.

The Waste-Free Ontario Act, passed on June 1, 2016, is going to increase waste diversion, require producers to take full responsibility for their products and packaging and help fight climate change.

You can read my full deputation at the Legislative Assembly by clicking here.

I also had the opportunity to meet with the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, Glen Murray, to discuss Bill 151 and how the City of Toronto, as the largest municipality in the province, could take a leadership role in championing a “Zero Waste” vision and building a circular economy.