As of July 1, 2020, producers are required to establish and operate a collection system for their single-use (primary) or rechargeable batteries and should reference the Battery Collection Systems compliance bulletin for guidance.
Collection Sites
Producers must ensure that consumers can drop off batteries free of charge at each site that is part of their collection system and satisfy the following requirements:
- If the battery collection site is not part of a retail location, it must accept all batteries
- If the site is part of a retail location, it must accept (at a minimum) all batteries that are of a similar size, function and category of batteries sold at the location
- The site must be readily accessible to the public and operate during normal business hours
- The site must accept, at a minimum, up to 15kg of batteries per day from any person
- If the site is not part of a retail location and accepts more than 15 kg of batteries from a person on a single day, the site operator must record the person’s name, contact information and the weight of batteries accepted
Producers can reduce their accessibility requirements by providing options such as curbside collection, mailback programs, or collection events.
Management Requirements
Producers must ensure that every battery picked up from a collection site, regardless of whether it is part of the producer’s collection system, is managed (reused, refurbished or processed) within three months of the pickup date.
From July 1, 2020, to December 31, 2022, every producer shall make best efforts to meet their management requirements, as calculated in the Batteries Regulation. This means that producers must make best efforts to reuse, refurbish, or recycle 40% of the batteries they supply in Ontario.
To meet their management requirements, Producers can only use a battery processor that is registered with the Authority (unless they are exempt) and meets the recycling efficiency rate (RER) requirements set out in the Registry Procedure – Verification and Audit.
The Regulation defines recovered resources as:
- materials used or destined to be used by a person for the making of new products or packaging
- materials used to enrich soil
- materials used as aggregate (up to a 15% max)
The following do not count as recovered resources:
- materials that are land disposed
- materials that are incinerated or used as fuel or a fuel supplement
- materials that are stored, stockpiled, used as a daily landfill cover or otherwise deposited on land
It is important to note that management requirements will be confirmed during producer registration in November 2020. This means that producers have to engage in five months of collection and resource recovery activities starting in July 2020, prior to confirming their requirements at registration. It will be important for battery producers to ensure that, at a minimum, they have interim contractual arrangements in place with service providers to cover this five-month period prior to registration in November 2020.
Working with PROs
Producers have the choice of establishing and operating their own collection and management systems or working with one or more producer responsibility organizations (PROs) registered with the Authority to meet their obligations.
A PRO is a business established to contract with producers to provide collection and management and administrative services to help producers meet their regulatory obligations under the Batteries Regulation, including:
- Arranging the establishment or operation of battery collection and management systems (hauling, recycling, reuse or refurbishment services)
- Establishing or operating a collection or management system
- Preparing and submitting reports
PROs operate in a competitive market and producers can choose the PRO (or PROs) they want to work with. The terms and conditions of each contract with a PRO may vary. Registered PROs are listed here.
