WHEREAS the province has implemented several product stewardship programs for specific waste materials as part of its commitment to the Three Rs of reduce, reuse and recycle; AND WHEREAS the toxicity of household batteries creates a significant environmental risk in landfills and is a concern for local governments; AND WHEREAS there is a modest voluntary recycling program for rechargeable household batteries but no program at all for non-rechargeable household batteries: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the UBCM urge the Ministry of Environment to require producers to take responsibility for their product by setting up a comprehensive product stewardship program that includes all household batteries and services all communities of the province.
Ministry of Environment The Province of British Columbia regulates industry-led product stewardship under the Recycling Regulation 2004, which makes producers responsible for the lifecycle management of their products. The Ministry of Environment has a service plan commitment to add two new product categories to the Regulation every three years. The Ministry notified stakeholders of a list of the next possible products in the summer of 2007. In April 2008, government announced its intention to amend the Recycling Regulation in the autumn of 2008 to include mercury-containing light bulbs and thermostats, and expand the existing electronics product category, which currently includes televisions, computers, monitors and desktop printers. The expansion of this category would mean adding electrical equipment, which would include batteries that are used in electronic and small householdconsumer electrical equipment. It would also include mercury-containing light bulbs as peripherals for lighting equipment. Producers of batteries and mercury containing products have expressed their support for the initiative and consultations with affected stakeholders have been underway since spring 2008. We anticipate roll-out of a province-wide recycling system for batteries and mercury containing light bulbs in late 2009.