QUEEN’S PARK — Green Party of Ontario Leader and MPP for Guelph, Mike Schreiner, released the following statement regarding changes to the Ontario Blue Bin program:
“I thank David Lindsay for his ‘Renewing the Blue Box’ report and for reminding the government of the ‘polluter pays principle,’ which should apply to everything from waste to climate pollution.
I am encouraged by the Environment Minister, who has committed to a shift to producer responsibility that will transfer costs from municipalities and onto product manufacturers.
Global best practice is to make companies, not citizens, fully responsible for the end-life of their products. I am glad to see the PC government listening to experts for once, though the devil will be in the regulatory details.
My fear is that the Premier does not understand that our waste problem is reaching a crisis point. I am worried that waste will continue to pile up in landfills, parks, and lakes until 2025 when the new system is scheduled to be in place.
That’s why I am urging the government to ban the worst single-use plastics by 2020 so that we can start taking immediate action on the plastic pollution problem.
While we make a long-term shift to a smarter, more viable waste reduction model, the Premier must show urgent leadership to reduce plastic pollution altogether and move Ontario to a zero waste future.”