By TERRY PUGH
With major changes on the horizon for municipal recycling collection programs in Saskatchewan, Warman City Council is looking to keep a lid on costs for residents and businesses.
Councillors voted at their meeting on Monday, November 24 to participate in a program administered and operated by SK Recycles, a non-profit organization responsible for managing the recycling of household packaging and paper.
In choosing this program, council rejected the option of operating its own collection service under contract to SK Recycles. This option would have been more expensive and risky, according to a city administration report to the November 24 council meeting.
SK Recycles, formerly known as Multi-Material Stewardship Western (MMSW), ensures recyclable materials are collected from households and depots, sorted and responsibly recycled. It is funded by over 550 businesses that include retailers, manufacturers and restaurants that supply packaging and paper to Saskatchewan residents. MMSW was launched in 2016, and collects fees from producers that cover up to 75% of the cost of recycling programs.
Recently, the provincial government implemented a change that will see Saskatchewan transition to a full Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) program for household packaging and paper recycling.
As part of the transition, MMSW rebranded to a new name, SK Recycles, on December 1, 2024. The MMSW program will officially end in December 2027.
The EPR program means businesses, stores and restaurants are responsible for the packaging and paper they supply to consumers after consumers are done with it. This includes not only paper, cardboard, aluminum and glass beverage containers, but also non-deposit glass bottles and jars, zip-lock pouches, crinkly plastic bag packaging, bubble wrap and rigid foam packaging.
The City of Warman currently contracts with Loraas Disposal for recycling services under the MMSW program. The city receives an annual subsidy in the amount of about $190,000 from MMSW to offset the cost of the recycling service. The current program has no penalties or restrictions on collection practices.
However, that program is slated to end on December 1, 2027.
SK Recycles is offering two recycling service ‘participation models’ for municipalities to choose from between now and the final phase-out of the MMSW program.
Option 1 is ‘Program-led’, in which SK Recycles assumes full responsibility for collection of recyclables and associated costs. The city would relinquish all operational control over recycling, and would not be eligible for any subsidies from the provincial program.
SK Recycles would assume all responsibility and costs for educating residents and reducing ‘contamination’ (non-compliant materials).
Option 2 is ‘Community-led’, in which the municipality contracts with SK Recycles to collect materials, and assumes responsibility for ensuring a ‘contamination’ rate of 6% or less. Failure to meet that target would result in financial penalties for the municipality.
According to the administration report to the November 24 council meeting, Option 2 would likely result in an annual deficit of about $33,000 which would have to be backfilled by the city through additional residential fees. The city would also incur the cost of educating residents about the program, as well as possible penalties if the education does not result in lower contamination rates.
Council voted for Option 1 because it would be low-risk and would not impose additional financial costs on residents or the city. SK Recycles has also committed to minimizing any potential disruption of service.