Extended Producer Responsibility

What is Extended Producer Responsibility?

Extended producer responsibility (EPR) makes the businesses that sell products and packaging responsible for them over their full life cycle. In 2022, the Alberta government passed a new regulation which introduces an EPR framework for single-use producers, packaging and paper producers (PPP) in the province. This encourages companies to make more careful decisions about the materials they use in their packaging and products, and holds them responsible for the cost of recycling those products at the end of their life, including collecting, sorting, processing, and recycling the packaging waste they create.

Advantages

While EPR is not a new concept for producers or suppliers, it is a new concept for Albertans. EPR presents several positive opportunities for municipalities in Alberta:

• Reduced costs for municipalities: The industries that create certain materials will now be responsible for the collection and management of those materials at the end of their product life.
• Increased recycling of products: Since producers are responsible for recycling the products they create — they have an incentive to ensure fewer products end up in our landfills or are disposed in other ways. 
• Steps towards an Albertan circular economy: The system creates consistent recycling outcomes for all municipalities, and products that previously ended up in the waste stream are redirected and recycled into new products to be used again and again. This means more job creation, more economic investment, and larger economies..

Timeline

• November 30, 2022: The Government of Alberta passed regulations for EPR, including eligible materials and recycling targets for materials. The Alberta Recycling Management Authority (ARMA) was named as the oversight body.
• April 1, 2025: The transition to this new framework will start on April 1, 2025. Communities who had existing collection service as of November 30, 2022, will begin transitioning on April 1, 2025.
• October 1, 2026: Communities who did not have existing collection service as of November 30, 2022, will transition on October 1, 2026. Wetaskiwin will be part of this group, transitioning in October 2026

Learn more about Extended Producer Responsibility here: Extended Producer Responsibility | Alberta.ca