Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus OVERVIEW OF EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY Jim Mahon Ontario Environment Network Detoxifying the Economy & the Body Politic Toronto, March 30, 2003

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus OVERVIEW OF EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY What is EPR? Why EPR? Policies embodying EPR Recent survey of EPR Programs Essential Elements of an Effective EPR Program

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus Raw Materials Acquisition Materials Manufacture Product Design/ Manufacture Product Use or Consumption End of Life Energy Wastes Product Recycling Wastes Reuse WHAT IS EPR? THE PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY Term used by OECD, EU, Canada Extended Producer Responsibility is the principle that producers of products are responsible for the life-cycle environmental impacts of the whole product system, including upstream impacts inherent in the selection of materials for the products, impacts from the manufacturers production process itself, and downstream impacts from the use and disposal of the products. Focus on producers because in most cases have the greatest ability to reduce life-cycle environmental impacts. Producers accept their responsibility when they design their products to minimize the life-cycle environmental impacts, and when they accept the physical or economic responsibility for the environmental impacts that cannot be eliminated by design.

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus PRODUCT STEWARDSHIP AND EXTENDED PRODUCT RESPONSIBILITY Extended Product Responsibility and Product Stewardship used by US EPA; Environment Canada also uses Product Stewardship. Used to highlight shared responsibility--actors along product chain share responsibility. Minnesota: Product stewardship means all parties with a role in designing, producing, selling or using a product assume responsibility for the environmental impacts of that product throughout its life. In particular, product stewardship requires manufacturers to share in the financial and physical responsibility for collecting and recycling products at the end of their useful lives. Also used to distinguish voluntary agreements from mostly mandatory programs in Western Europe.

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus ATTRIBUTES OF EPR Extends up and/or down the product chain Focuses on the product system, not just the production facility Shared and overlapping responsibilities among actors along the product chain

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus EPR: DOWN THE CHAIN EPR AS A PRINCIPLE FOR WASTE POLICY

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus EPR: UP AND DOWN THE CHAIN EPR AS A PRINCIPLE FOR PRODUCT POLICY

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus MODELS OF EPR Product take back for waste management Life-cycle partnerships for waste management Materials selection Materials management Extended environmental management programs Leasing systems Delivering service and function instead of products Design-for-the-environment programs Environmental purchasing

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus WHY EPR? SUSTAINABILITY I = P x A x T Impact = Population x Affluence x Technology Affluence = Consumption/Person T = Impact/Consumption

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus LIMITS OF FACILITY-BASED AND WASTE-BASED ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROLS Allows transfers of pollutants between environmental media Allows transfers of pollutants between life-cycle stages Ignores materials selection Ignores workplace health and safety Ignores impacts in use of products Ignores the end of life of products Ignores resource use Ignores energy use and greenhouse gases

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus TAKE-BACK POLICIES: GERMAN PACKAGING ORDINANCE Take back responsibility initially on retailers Created DSD to collect and recycle from households Packer/fillers pay fees based on costs of recycling materials Recycling quotas High rates achieved %

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus EPR LEGISLATION OR AGREEMENTS FOR TAKE BACK PACKAGING –EU –Canada –Germany –The Netherlands –France –Austria –Denmark –Finland –Japan –Sweden –Norway AUTOMOBILES –EU –Germany –The Netherlands –Sweden –Austria ELECTRONICS –EU –The Netherlands –Norway –Sweden –Switzerland –Italy –Japan –Taiwan –Korea –Belgium

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus EPR LEGISLATION OR AGREEMENTS FOR TAKE BACK PAINTS, CHEMICALS –British Columbia RECHARGEABLE BATTERIES –Minnesota –Austria –Denmark –Germany –Korea –The Netherlands –Norway –Sweden –Switzerland –Belgium –United States –Canada CARPET –United States

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus BENEFITS AND DRIVERS FOR VOLUNTARY ADOPTION COST SAVINGS DEMONSTRATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP PRODUCT INNOVATION INCREASED CUSTOMER LOYALTY AND SATISFACTION GREEN MARKETING LEGISLATION ABROAD EXISTING FACILITY-BASED ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATIONS ENVIRONMENTAL LIABILITIES

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus VOLUNTARY APPROACHES: THE GREEN LEASE Providing product function or service without transferring ownership of the product or materials Dematerializes the function Remanufacturing instead of recycling Xerox Copier Leasing; Interface Flooring Systems Evergreen Lease

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus EXAMPLE: XEROX Asset Recycle Management –Remanufacturing copiers from lease program –saved $50 million in first year –Cartridge Return-1100 tons diverted in 1995 Design for the Environment Savings of > $200 million per year

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus CONCLUSIONS FROM RECENT OECD STUDY OF IMPLEMENTATION OF EPR Characteristics of products affect the management of the EPR programs and their effectiveness. Mandatory programmes give better results in the case when desired recycling level is economically unprofitable. Mandatory numerical collection/reuse/recycling targets have been effective in achieving higher results. Substance/landfill bans drive product re-design and development of alternative substances. An effective and convenient collection system is a prerequisite for consumer participation. Establishment of a financial mechanism for durable, complex products poses more challenges than that for non-durable, simple products. Individual financial responsibility presents an important opportunity to stimulate design changes if it works for the product system.

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus PRINCIPLES FOR APPLICATION OF PRODUCT STEWARDSHIP 1.The extension of responsibility should be done in such a way as to create effective feedback to product designers that stimulates the design of cleaner products. 2.EPR programs should take a life-cycle approach, and be directed at producing life-cycle benefits, even if they focus on end of life, so that environmental impacts are not increased or transferred somewhere else in the product chain. 3.There should be a well-defined focus of responsibility, so that the responsibility is not diluted out of existence.

Ontario Environment Network, Labour Caucus Essential Elements of an Effective EPR Program Mandatory Focus on products. Assignment of responsibility. Physical or financial responsibility. Performance standards and deadlines. Mandated phase-out of hazardous materials. Ban waste disposal and exports. Flexibility and accountability. Historical waste. Complementary measures.