Creating a greener world with beverage container recycling isn’t wishful thinking. BC’s Return-It program makes it
simple and effective.
“Greener living” isn’t just a buzzword to British Columbians. Caring for the Earth by making
sustainable choices is a priority for many living here. Encouraging environmentally conscious industry practices, using a results-based regulatory framework that extends the responsibility of producers, is not only an innovative approach, it’s an effective one.
While the Ministry of Environment and Parks set British Columbia’s Recycling Regulation, it’s up to industry to deliver in this results-based framework. That gives producers the power to
determine how to fulfil the regulatory requirements and, in many cases, exceed them. The
success of this framework is exactly why the B.C. extended producer responsibility (EPR)
model is noteworthy and laudable.
How EPR works in BC
So how does the EPR model work? Let’s look at beverage container as an example most of us are familiar with.
B.C.’s Recycling Regulation puts the responsibility of end-of-life material onto the producers of those products, in this case the producers of beverages. Producers must meet specific
recovery targets for those products. Returns are encouraged via the deposit system, where the consumer pays a small amount for each container and gets the money back when they bring the containers to a return location. The system is funded by the producers and consumers of the beverages, removing the financial burden from general taxpayers and municipalities.
Rather than individual brands setting up a bunch of different programs and processes to
recover their specific products in B.C., an organization such as Encorp Pacific (Canada) —
better known as Return-It — steps in to do that work on behalf of the producers, streamlining the system into a convenient, efficient, and effective process.
Return-It is a not-for-profit producer responsibility organization, or PRO. Its mandate is to
develop, manage, and improve systems to recover used packaging/beverage containers and products that have reached the end of their usefulness, ensuring they are properly recycled in the most economical and environmentally friendly ways possible.
Busting recycling myths
You may have heard claims that recycling is pointless and that recycled beverage containers are just sent to the landfill or incinerated anyway. Schedule 1, specific to beverage containers, of B.C.’s Recycling Regulation specifically prohibits that. All beverage containers collected in B.C. get recycled. They don’t go to the landfill or incinerator. Many material types such as
plastic, aluminum and glass are processed locally in Canada or the United States, often turned back into new beverage containers helping fuel a circular economy.
Diverting containers from general waste was a priority for sustainability-minded stewardship organizations such as Return-It even before EPR regulations were enacted. Meeting and
exceeding sustainability goals with creative and innovative solutions is a hallmark of this work.
Success by the numbers
Make no mistake, the framework has been a success and continues to be. B.C.’s deposit return system contributes to higher recycling rates and reduced carbon emissions. In total, B.C.’s used beverage container deposit return system contributed to the reduction of about 125,200 tonnes of CO2e being released into the atmosphere in 2023.
Under its mandate, Return-It continues to develop and operate a system that provides
consumer-friendly and convenient return points throughout the province. Last year, it achieved an actual recovery rate of 79.6 percent, a three percent increase over 2022. Return-It
cost-effectively manages the system with the lowest possible impact on consumer prices while finding usable end products that maximize the value of the recovered materials.
You can learn more about how Return-It is taking action and contributing to B.C.’s sustainability goals at return-it.ca.
