File Attachments
- 13 Dec 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
The OWMA is continuing to send out emails along with materials for all members to update their listings on the OWMA website online. Due to unforeseen circumstances, we are having to update manually this year – we are working on correcting this BUT in the meantime – please look to your inbox for this very important email and please make every effort to update your services, your personnel, your locations and other information that may be used by current and potential customers and communities. Providing the most up to date information on the OWMA website ensures that your customers/residents can find you. Alternatively – you may use the links provided - the links to the services pages are available here – you can fill them in and scan them to send them back to the OWMA office and we will update the listings for you. PLEASE NOTE – ALL UPDATES MUST BE COMPLETED BY FRIDAY, DECEMBER 29TH, 2017 in order to be included in the 2018 OWMA Members and Service Guide that will be available at the OWMA Annual General Meeting on March 7th, 2018.
File Attachments
- 12 Dec 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
NIAGARA FALLS - Today, Walker Environmental Group Inc. (Walker) announces the acquisition of Gro-Bark®, the leading mulch and potting soil manufacturer in Ontario. Based in Caledon, Ontario, the addition of Gro-Bark® now makes Walker the largest fully integrated organics recovery company in Canada.
Gro-Bark® services the Ontario and US Great Lakes region horticultural industry with high quality, sustainable and innovative materials that help plants grow. In addition to the soil blending facility in Caledon, there are composting, mulch production and several aged bark reclamation sites throughout Ontario.
From Mike Watt, Executive Vice-President at Walker “Gro-Bark® shares the Walker view that end product quality is the key to the successful recovery of organics in the developing circular economy. Their dedication to servicing the customer first and ability to execute on logistics and materials movement provides Walker with an unparalleled advantage in the marketplace.”
Walker continues to invest in recovering and repurposing organic waste into high quality products for retailers, nurseries and greenhouses. From Bill McKague of Gro-Bark® “I’m happy that a company like Walker will continue to run Gro-Bark® with a dedication to the employees, the suppliers, the customers and the communities in which we work. The growth potential for the companies together make for an exciting future for all of our people.”
About Walker Industries and Walker EnvironmentalSince 1887, Walker Industries, the parent company of Walker Environmental has proven to be a diversified company with a reputation for integrity, care & creativity. Walker is a 5th generation, family-owned Canadian company that has operated from a base in the Niagara Region for over 125 years. Now with facilities across Canada and the United States and employing more than 700 people, the company takes pride in providing infrastructure that builds communities. Walker Industries group of companies offers aggregates, paving & construction, emulsions and environmental waste & recycling solutions.
Walker Environmental is a leading waste management and resource recovery company. The company operates two landfills, a waste transfer facility, six biosolids stabilization plants, two composting facilities, four food/residual organic processing facilities, several landfill gas renewable energy projects in Ontario and Manitoba, and a waste haulage company.
Commitment to the environment, communities, and tomorrow’s generations is the foundation for growth at Walker Industries. To learn more about Walker Industries and Walker Environmental please visit www.walkerind.com
For more information, please contact Mike Watt, Executive Vice-President, Walker Environmental Group, 905-680-3752 or via email at mwatt@walkerind.com.
File Attachments
- 29 Nov 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
A minor administrative correction has been made to the number of 2017 vintage allowances to be offered for sale at Ontario's fourth cap and trade auction which will be held on November 29, 2017. The number has been corrected from 25,296,367 originally indicated in the notice issued on September 29, 2017 to 25,296,369. (See here for the revised November 29th auction notice).
File Attachments
- 20 Nov 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
The Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) is continuing to modernize the regulatory system for environmental approvals with an objective to reduce administrative burden and lower the cost of doing business. Currently, Ontario businesses can apply for the Environmental Compliance Approval (ECA) online and track the progress of their applications.
Starting in January 2018, the MOECC is implementing a one-year service standard for higher risk ECA applications received in 2018 and beyond. The MOECC will be able to put the review process on hold to give clients more time to provide additional information, if needed. Clients will be notified of the date and reason the review was put on hold, and what they need to submit to resume the review. The date of the one-year service standard will be adjusted accordingly. Clients and the public will also be able to view and track the progress of ECA applications online.
The MOECC is committed to working with applicants to make it easier to complete high quality ECA applications. This will allow the MOECC to review and approve applications in a timely manner.
More details, including guidance material, will be posted on Ontario.ca prior to January 1, 2018. OWMA will keep you updated on further developments and resource material availability.
- 18 Oct 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
The OWMA has responded to the Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) consultation opportunity relative to the Discussion Document on Proposed Regulatory Changes and Administrative and Compliance Costs for Business (find here). The association is supportive of consolidating the three regulations into one. While the document and proposed regulatory approaches(find here) are largely conceptual in nature a cursory review also has identified specific concerns with the proposed five year data retention period, Expansion of captured materials, costs and coordination of electronic document requirements between the regulation and provincial regulations.
File Attachments
- 18 Oct 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
Meeting Reminder: Developing the Amended Blue Box Program Plan - In Discussion with the Ontario Waste Management Industry
As current subcontractors to Ontario local governments and as future collection subcontractors and post-collection processors of collected residential recycling, your feedback and suggestions are essential as we develop a proposal for an amended Blue Box Program Plan (a-BBPP).
If you haven't yet registered and would like to attend the consultation meeting on Friday, October 27, to review and discuss proposed a-BBPP features that will specifically pertain to the waste management industry, please register here.
The October 27 meeting will be an opportunity for us to gather your initial feedback and discuss:
- Requirements from the Minister's Letter that will be of special interest to waste management companies and details about the consultation process.
- The proposed transition process and timelines, including Stewardship Ontario's proposed methods to ensure a fair competitive market.
- The proposed criteria for setting a standardized list of targeted materials for collection.
- The proposed material specific management targets, along with the proposed measurement approach.
- The proposed approach to expanding services, including multi-family buildings not currently serviced by municipalities, and consideration of new communities and public space recycling.
- The proposed collection and management standards.
- And more ...
Date: Friday, October 27, 2017
Time:
10:00 - 12:30 p.m. Eastern
9:00 - 11:30 a.m. CentralLocation:
Online via webcast or in-person at the Best Western PLUS Toronto Airport, 5825 Dixie Road, Mississauga, ON L4W 4V7.For more information on the a-BBPP initiative, click here. If you have any questions, please contact Jennifer James at jjames@stewardshipontario.ca.
Kind regards,
Stewardship Ontario
- 18 Oct 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
The OWMA has responded to the Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) consultation opportunity relative to the Discussion Document on Proposed Regulatory Changes and Administrative and Compliance Costs for Business (find here). The association is supportive of consolidating the three regulations into one. While the document and proposed regulatory approaches(find here) are largely conceptual in nature a cursory review also has identified specific concerns with the proposed five year data retention period, Expansion of captured materials, costs and coordination of electronic document requirements between the regulation and provincial regulations.
File Attachments
- 04 Oct 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
oday, the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario released ‘Beyond the Blue Box: Ontario's Fresh Start on Waste Diversion and the Circular Economy’, a Special Report to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
The ECO states that Ontario has a waste problem. Every year, Ontario produces nearly one tonne of waste per person, and three-quarters of this waste ends up in landfills. The government’s new Waste-Free Ontario Act and Strategy for a Waste-Free Ontario set an ambitious goal of a circular economy that sends zero waste to landfill.
Beyond the Blue Box acknowledges that Ontario’s new law and strategy are a significant achievement, but calls on government to get serious about making it work. The first steps: get food waste (organics) out of landfills and get businesses to pull their weight.
Ontario is rightfully proud of the Blue Box, which recycles paper and packaging from homes. But the Blue Box diverts less than 8% of Ontario’s total waste. For real impact, the province needs action on other significant waste streams – organics and industrial, commercial and institutional (IC&I) wastes – that have been ignored for far too long.
File Attachments
- 20 Sep 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
Ontario is helping businesses buy low-carbon vehicles and technologies that reduce emissions and foster sustainable development -- and the province is seeking public input. This investment is part of Ontario's
Climate Change Action Plan and is funded by proceeds from the province's cap on pollution and carbon market.
The new program will provide rebates towards the purchase of alternative-fuel vehicles and fuel-saving technologies, making it more affordable for local businesses to own and operate greener vehicles. Eligible vehicles and devices being considered under the program include electric and natural gas-powered trucks, aerodynamic devices, anti-idling devices and trailer refrigeration units.
The program will encourage more businesses to make the switch to low-carbon vehicles to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, a sector that generates about a third of Ontario's total greenhouse gas emissions.
File Attachments
- 09 Aug 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
On 14 February 2017, Ernst & Young LLP (“EY”) along with is subcontractors were engaged by the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (“MOECC” or the “Ministry”) pursuant to the MOECC’s request for proposal no. OSS – 00629651 (the “Proposal”). The objective of this engagement was for EY to support the implementation of the Ministry’s Excess Soil Management Policy Framework, including support for the establishment of a sustainable market for excess soil.
File Attachments
- 09 Aug 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
As it engages in consultations with the provincial government, the Ontario Trucking Association (OTA) is supporting the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) position that the trucking industry should be held to a zero-tolerance policy for being under the influence of marijuana.
The Government of Ontario is seeking feedback from groups on how to develop a responsible policy regarding the drug, due to be made legal in Canada next year. The consultations are focusing on protecting youth, strengthening public health, and road safety.
OTA president Jonathan Blackham says drug and alcohol use among commercial drivers in Ontario has not historically been a problem.
“Operating commercial vehicles comes with an added responsibility and strong commitment to road safety,” said Blackham. “Ontario needs to make sure that all vehicle operators understand that operating a motorized vehicle under the influence of marijuana will carry strong consequences.”
The group reports that statistically operators of large commercial vehicles are much less likely to be impaired by alcohol or drugs than all other motorists.
The OTA will also be working with the province on creating workplace testing policies, including a review of the responsibility of employers to accommodate those with addiction issues. They are also discussing establishing sobriety levels for commercial drivers and passenger vehicles, similar to those policies currently deployed for safety sensitive positions.
- 26 Jul 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
Yesterday, the provincial government added a draft regulation to its posting on the Environmental Registry to wind up industry funding organizations (IFOs), which include Stewardship Ontario, Ontario Electronic Stewardship and Ontario Tire Stewardship.
The regulation includes some general changes to ensure the Corporations Act applies to IFOs while laying out the role of the Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA) during the wind-up process.
IFO board members can voluntarily choose to start winding up their operations and appoint a liquidator, who would be approved by the Authority. Or board members could vote to pass a resolution in support of applying for a court-supervised wind-up.
The regulation also includes an added safeguard to allow the Authority or an administrator appointed by the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change to submit an application to the court in cases where it is believed that:
- the IFO’s wind-up process is inconsistent with the plan that was approved by the Authority, or,
- the process does not comply with the Waste Diversion Transition Act or its regulations.
This safeguard will help to ensure the orderly and timely wind-up of IFOs and Ontario’s existing recycling programs, which aligns with the OWMA’s priorities and support for transitioning to producer-responsibility regulations under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act.
If you have any questions or comments, please let us know by calling (905) 791-9500.
- 20 Jul 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
Yesterday, China notified the World Trade Organization that it plans to stop receiving shipments of several different types of waste later this year, including mixed-paper and plastics.
In response to China’s WTO filing on July 18, the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) issued a stern statement, warning of the “devastating impact” a ban would have, including the “loss of tens of thousands of jobs” and the “closure of many recycling businesses throughout the United States.” At the same time, China is undertaking a major inspection campaign of plastics recyclers operating inside its borders, which has already led to shrinking end-markets for plastic waste.
The ISRI said in its statement that it has already alerted the Office of the United States Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Commerce about its concerns related to a ban and has briefed American officials, who are meeting with Chinese representatives today as part of the U.S.-China Comprehensive Economic Dialogue.
The American media are reporting that today’s discussions between the U.S. and China got off to a tense start, and that both countries have cancelled their press conferences.
China is a major player in the global recycling industry, accepting as much as 56% of all plastic waste imports, according to Reuters. A potential ban would create serious challenges in Canada and across the globe. At this point, it is unclear what the Government of Canada’s position is on this matter.
- 12 Jul 2017 by Calvin Lakhan
Today, the Ontario Waste Management Association released a new guide to provide step-by-step advice on Enhancing Pollinator Habitats at Waste Management Sites.
The OWMA worked with Pollinator Partnership and Shared Value Solutions to produce this comprehensive guide, which breaks down how to create, maintain and enhance pollinator habitat areas at open and closed landfills sites, as well as other waste management facilities.
“Our association has and continues to play an active role in creating and conserving habitat areas to support pollinator health in our province,” said Gord White, OWMA CEO. “We hope that this guide will serve the sector in developing more pollinator habitat sites and contribute to the success of the provincial government’s efforts to maintain healthy pollinator populations in Ontario.”
The “Create” section of the guide explains how to select and prepare an appropriate pollinator habitat site at a landfill or a waste management facility. The “Maintain” section provides guidance on spring clean-up, post-fall seed planting and herbicide applications. And the “Enhance” section includes recommendations on maintaining habitats for specific pollinators, including hummingbirds and different species of bees and butterflies. The guide also explores budgeting, monitoring and conducting research at pollinator sites.
This special project received support from several OWMA members, which include: GFL Environmental Inc., the City of London, the Region of Niagara, the Region of Peel, Walker Environmental Group Inc., and Waste Connections of Canada.
“We appreciate the leadership and support of the OWMA’s membership on this important project,” White said. “Many OWMAmembers are already maintaining pollinator habitats at landfills and waste management facilities, and we trust this guide will provide the tools needed for even more of our members to create and maintain their own sites.”
To read the guide, click here. If you have any questions, please give us a call at (905) 791-9500.
File Attachments
- See more members only articles ...
