Province making it easier to raise surcharge on recyclables

by Morinville News Staff

The Government of Alberta says it’s making it easier for Alberta’s recycling industry to set surcharges on items including paint, oil, electronics, and tires by making recycling fee changes an administrative matter.

Previously, implementing the fee changes on the point of sale surcharge required cabinet approval. The new process, which the government views as a red tape reduction measure, allows the Alberta Recycling Management Authority (ARMA) to submit proposed changes and have those changed through an administrative process.

ARMA will now notify the Minister of Environment and Parks of proposed fee changes. The government says that Ministerial review and oversight will ensure fee increases are justified and reflect the actual cost of recycling.

The government says the move cuts industry red tape, but it also removes a previous recycling fee cap on products. The province says removing the cap, allows ARMA the flexibility to “propose fee changes that support the operation and sustainability of Alberta’s recycling programs.”

The current surcharge on TVs over 30 inches is $10 per unit at the point of sale. Computers are $4.40 for desktops and $1.20 for portables.

Since 2004, 9.5 million televisions and computers have been recycled.

Alberta remains the only province in Canada that has not adopted Extended Producer Responsibility whereby large consumer product producers help pay for the handling and disposal of the products and packaging they create.

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8 Comments

  1. So they won’t raise taxes the UCP is just removing the caps off everything so we pay more. Do they not realize that we would then pay more GST which goes to the federal government?

    Alberta is so frigged under this Government we will not recover for decades.

  2. The UCP… Making life more expensive by the day. Still waiting for one single supporter to say they made a mistake. Won’t get that though. Pride comes before the fall.

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