As we wait for a decision from the Ministry of Environment (MOE) on the Packaging and Printed Paper (PPP) Stewardship Plan, stakeholders have been asking What’s happening? and What happens next?
What’s happening?
Multi-Material British Columbia (MMBC) continues to dialogue with local government staff, committees, councils and boards as well as private companies and not-for-profit organizations. These discussions typically focus on the stakeholder’s specific circumstances and the practical aspects of transitioning responsibility to stewards.
MMBC is also preparing for implementation of the PPP Stewardship Plan by:
- Launching an updated MMBC website designed to accommodate posting information for
- Stewards – explaining their obligation under the Recycling Regulation and, as they are available, procedures for reporting the quantity of PPP supplied to BC residents
- Service providers – explaining MMBC’s approach to provide PPP collection and post-collection services and, as they are available, information on market-clearing price financial incentives for collectors and a request for proposals (RFP) for post-collection services
- Residents – encouraging residents to continue to use their current PPP collection programs and, prior to program launch, informing them about any changes to their PPP collection programs
- Compiling ‘plain language’ examples of PPP to help collectors understand the types of PPP they will be expected to collect
- For example, Aseptic Containers include milk, soy, rice milk, cream, soup, broth and sauce containers, typically about 1 litre in size
- Developing collection market-clearing price financial incentives by researching PPP collection costs and analyzing the PPP collection cost data
- Developing terms and conditions for collector contracts
- Developing terms and conditions for a RFP for curbside collection of PPP (to be utilized by MMBC where a local government declines the market-clearing price)
What happens next?
Although MMBC continues to be busy with the activities described above, MMBC will not procure collection or post-collection services until the PPP Stewardship Plan is approved. The following activities will be implemented following plan approval:
- A workshop to present the market-clearing price financial incentives
- Offers of the curbside collection market-clearing price to local governments providing curbside collection of PPP as of November 2012
- Offers of the curbside collection market-clearing price to local governments providing curbside collection of garbage as of November 2012 where no curbside collection of PPP was provided
- Qualifying multi-family building and depot collectors
- Executing contracts with local governments to provide curbside, multi-family building and depot collection
- Executing contracts with private companies and not-for-profit organizations to provide multi-family building and depot collection
- Issuing a request for proposals to provide PPP post-collection services
- Evaluating bid submissions and executing contracts with the successful primary processors to provide post-collection services
The timing for these activities will be determined following plan approval. With May 2014 just 14 months away, the implementation timeline is likely to feel rushed for all involved. MMBC will endeavour, within the available time between plan approval and plan launch, to provide adequate time for:
- Local governments to consider the market-clearing price financial incentives and reach a decision on whether they will accept the incentive and continue to provide PPP collection services to their residents or decline the offer and transition PPP collection services to MMBC
- Private companies and not-for-profit organizations to consider MMBC’s requirements of collectors, make any necessary adjustments to their operations and apply to be qualified as MMBC collectors
- MMBC to qualify private companies and not-for-profit organizations against the multi-family and depot collector standards
- Collectors to prepare to add more types of PPP to their collection system
- Primary processors to prepare bids in response to MMBC’s post-collection RFP
- MMBC to evaluate the bid submissions and execution contracts with the successful bidders
- The successful primary processors to prepare to receive collected PPP
- Where required, adjustments to existing contracts between local governments and their sub-contractors
