O. Reg. 556/24: BATTERIES, Filed December 19, 2024 under Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016, S.O. 2016, c. 12, Sched. 1
ontario regulation 556/24
made under the
Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016
Made: December 12, 2024
Filed: December 19, 2024
Published on e-Laws: December 19, 2024
Published in The Ontario Gazette: January 4, 2025
Amending O. Reg. 30/20
(BATTERIES)
1. Ontario Regulation 30/20 is amended by striking out “performance period” wherever it appears and substituting in each case “calendar year”.
2. The heading to Part I of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
PART I
interpretation
3. (1) Section 1 of the Regulation is amended by adding the following definitions:
“average weight of supply” means, when used in reference to a producer with respect to a category of batteries and a calendar year, the applicable number calculated in accordance with section 1.2; (“poids moyen de produit fourni”)
“council of the band” has the same meaning as in the Indian Act (Canada); (“conseil de bande”)
“Far North” has the same meaning as in the Far North Act, 2010; (“Grand Nord”)
“local municipality” means a single-tier municipality or a lower-tier municipality; (“municipalité locale”)
“local services board” has the same meaning as “Board” as defined in section 1 of the Northern Services Boards Act; (“régie locale des services publics”)
(2) The definitions of “performance period” and “recycling efficiency rate” in section 1 of the Regulation are revoked.
4. The Regulation is amended by adding the following sections:
Population
1.1 A reference in this Regulation to the population of a municipality or territorial district in a calendar year is a reference to the population as reported by Statistics Canada in the most recent official census that was published before the preceding calendar year.
Determination of average weight of supply
1.2 (1) For the purposes of this Regulation, a producer’s average weight of supply in respect of batteries and in respect of a calendar year shall be determined using the formulas set out in subsection (2).
(2) The formulas referred to in subsection (1) are the following:
1. For a producer of primary batteries:
(Y2 + Y3 + Y4) / 3
2. For a producer of rechargeable batteries:
(Y3 + Y4 + Y5) / 3
(3) In the formulas set out in subsection (2),
“Y2” is the weight of the producer’s primary batteries supplied in Ontario in the calendar year two years prior,
“Y3” is the weight of the producer’s primary batteries or rechargeable batteries, as the case may be, supplied in Ontario in the calendar year three years prior,
“Y4” is the weight of the producer’s primary batteries or rechargeable batteries, as the case may be, supplied in Ontario in the calendar year four years prior, and
“Y5” is the weight of the producer’s primary batteries or rechargeable batteries, as the case may be, supplied in Ontario in the calendar year five years prior.
(4) The producer shall calculate the producer’s average weight of supply for a calendar year using the data submitted under paragraph 3 of subsection 24 (1) with respect to each of Y2, Y3, Y4 and Y5.
5. Section 4 of the Regulation is revoked.
6. Section 7 of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
Exemptions
7. A producer is exempt from Parts III and IV and sections 19, 24 and 31 in a calendar year in respect of primary batteries or rechargeable batteries if the producer’s average weight of supply for that calendar year, as determined under section 1.2 in respect of that category, is not greater than,
(a) in the case of primary batteries, 5.0 tonnes; or
(b) in the case of rechargeable batteries, 2.5 tonnes.
7. Subsection 8 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “11” at the end and substituting “11.2”.
8. Sections 9 and 10 of the Regulation are revoked and the following substituted:
Collection, large producers
9. (1) This section applies in a calendar year in respect of every producer whose average weight of supply in respect of a category of batteries for that calendar year is,
(a) 160 tonnes or more, in the case of primary batteries; or
(b) 80 tonnes or more, in the case of rechargeable batteries.
(2) A producer to whom this section applies in respect of a category of batteries shall establish and operate a collection system for the category in the calendar year by satisfying the following requirements:
1. Subject to subsections 11 (3) to (6), in each local municipality with a population of 1,000 or more in the calendar year, the producer shall establish and operate battery collection sites at which that category of batteries is collected, as follows:
i. If the population is 500,000 or less, at least one battery collection site for every 15,000 people or portion thereof.
ii. If the population is more than 500,000, at least 34 battery collection sites for the first 500,000, and at least one battery collection site for every 50,000 people or portion thereof, for the portion that surpasses 500,000.
2. In each territorial district with a population of 1,000 or more in the calendar year, the producer shall establish and operate at least one battery collection site at which that category of batteries is collected.
Collection, small producers
10. (1) This section applies in a calendar year in respect of every producer whose average weight of supply in respect of a category of batteries for that calendar year is,
(a) less than 160 tonnes, in the case of primary batteries; or
(b) less than 80 tonnes, in the case of rechargeable batteries.
(2) A producer to whom this section applies in respect of a category of batteries shall establish and operate a collection system for the category in the calendar year by satisfying one of the following requirements:
1. Subject to subsections 11 (3) to (6), in each local municipality or territorial district with one or more retail locations that supplied the producer’s batteries in that category to consumers at any point in the previous calendar year, as many battery collection sites as are equal to or greater than 75 per cent of the highest number of those retail locations that were operating at the same time during the previous calendar year, rounded up to the nearest whole number, are established and operated.
2. The producer shall establish and operate battery collection sites at which that category of batteries is collected as follows:
i. Subject to subsections 11 (3) to (6), in each local municipality with a population of 5,000 or more in the calendar year, the producer shall establish and operate,
A. at least one battery collection site for every 15,000 people or portion thereof, if the population is 500,000 or less, or
B. if the population is more than 500,000, at least 34 battery collection sites for the first 500,000, and at least one battery collection site for every 50,000 people or portion thereof, for the portion that surpasses 500,000.
ii. The producer shall establish and operate at least one battery collection site in each territorial district with a population of 1,000 or more in the calendar year in which the producer supplied that category of batteries at any point in the previous calendar year.
9. (1) Paragraph 3 of subsection 11 (1) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
3. The battery collection site must be readily accessible to the public.
3.1 If the battery collection site is not owned or operated by a municipality or local services board, it must accept batteries during normal business hours throughout the calendar year.
3.2 If the battery collection site is owned or operated by a municipality or local services board, the site must not have been promoted as a collection event by the municipality or local services board.
(2) Paragraph 5 of subsection 11 (1) of the Regulation is revoked.
(3) Subsection 11 (3) of the Regulation is amended by adding “rounded up to the nearest whole number” at the end of the portion before clause (a).
(4) Clause 11 (3) (a) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “applicable performance period” and substituting “calendar year”.
(5) Subsection 11 (4) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
(4) Subject to subsection (6), a producer may reduce the number of battery collection sites the producer is required to establish and operate in a local municipality or territorial district under subsection 9 (2) or 10 (2), as the case may be, by the percentage described in subsection (4.1), rounded up to the nearest whole number.
(4.1) For the purposes of subsection (4), the percentage is the percentage of batteries that the producer supplied in Ontario in the previous calendar year and in respect of which the producer ensured that a program was made available throughout Ontario that provided for one of the following, at no charge:
1. A service through which the producer’s batteries are collected from consumers.
2. A mail or courier service through which consumers may return the producer’s batteries, including the provision of necessary packaging or shipping materials.
(6) Paragraph 1 of subsection 11 (5) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
1. A producer may replace up to 25 per cent of the total number of battery collection sites, rounded up to the nearest whole number and as determined before applying any reductions under subsections (3) and (4), that the producer is required to operate in Ontario, with the same number of public battery collection events.
(7) Subsections 11 (6) to (9) of the Regulation are revoked and the following substituted:
(6) Despite subsections (3), (4) and (5), the number of battery collection sites the producer is required to establish and operate in a calendar year shall not be reduced such that there is no battery collection site or public battery collection event in a local municipality or territorial district with a population of 1,000 or more in that calendar year if the producer supplied batteries at a retail location in the local municipality or territorial district at any point in the previous calendar year.
10. The Regulation is amended by adding the following sections:
Call-in collection
11.1 (1) Subject to subsection (2), if a large producer receives a notice from a representative of one of the following entities that more than one tonne of batteries has been collected, the producer shall collect all of the batteries from the entity or operation within one year of being notified:
1. A council of the band.
2. A municipality that is not located in the Far North.
3. A local services board that is not located in the Far North.
4. A depot where batteries are collected that is owned or operated by the Crown in right of Ontario and that is not located in the Far North.
(2) A producer who is notified under subsection (1) by a representative of a council of the band regarding batteries located on a reserve in the Far North shall make reasonable efforts to collect the batteries within one year of being notified.
Battery collection sites in adjacent municipalities
11.2 (1) In this section,
“base municipality” means the local municipality in which a producer is required to establish and operate battery collection sites under sections 9 to 11.
(2) Despite the requirements in sections 9 to 11 and subject to subsection (3), the total number of battery collection sites that a producer is required to establish and operate in a base municipality may include sites established and operated by the producer in an adjacent local municipality, if those sites in the adjacent local municipality accept all of the batteries that would otherwise have been accepted at a site in the base municipality
(3) The total number of battery collection sites that are established and operated in other local municipalities under subsection (2) shall not exceed 10 per cent of the battery collection sites that the producer is required to establish and operate under this Regulation, rounded up to the nearest whole number.
11. Section 13 of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
Management requirement
13. (1) Every producer shall manage, in a calendar year, a minimum amount of batteries, determined by multiplying the sum of the producer’s average weights of supply for the calendar year in respect of batteries in each category, multiplied by,
(a) 0.45, for 2025; and
(b) 0.50, for 2026 and every subsequent year.
(2) Every producer shall ensure that the data used to calculate a management requirement under subsection (1) is determined and verified in accordance with the Verification and Audit Procedure.
12. Section 14 of the Regulation is amended by striking out “or to make best efforts to manage batteries, as the case may be” in the portion before clause (a).
13. Section 15 of the Regulation is revoked.
14. (1) Paragraph 1 of subsection 16 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out the portion before subparagraph i and substituting the following:
1. The weight of recovered resources from batteries counted toward the management requirement must be from batteries used by a consumer in Ontario that have been, by the end of the calendar year,
. . . . .
(2) Subparagraph 1 ii of subsection 16 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out the portion before subsubparagraph A and substituting the following:
ii. processed by a battery processor who is registered under section 21 or not required to be registered under section 21 as a result of processing less than 300 tonnes of batteries for the purpose of fulfilling producer responsibilities in the previous calendar year, and
. . . . .
(3) Subsections 16 (3) and (4) of the Regulation are revoked.
15. (1) Subsection 17 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “Subject to subsection (2)” in the portion before paragraph 1.
(2) Subsection 17 (2) of the Regulation is revoked and following substituted:
(2) The weight of post-consumer recycled content referred to in subsection (1) must be verified in accordance with the Verification and Audit Procedure.
16. Part VI of the Regulation is amended by adding the following section:
Information submitted as part of registration
21.1 Any person required to submit information under this Part to the Authority with respect to the weight of a category of batteries shall ensure that the information is verified in accordance with any requirements set out in the Verification and Audit Procedure.
17. Paragraph 7 of subsection 27 (1) of the Regulation is revoked.
18. The Regulation is amended by adding the following section:
Information submitted as part of a report
28.1 Any person required to submit information under this Part to the Authority with respect to the weight of a category of batteries shall ensure that the information is verified in accordance with any requirements set out in the Verification and Audit Procedure.
19. Subsection 30 (2) of the Regulation is revoked.
Commencement
20. This Regulation comes into force on the later of January 1, 2025 and the day this Regulation is filed.