Summary of recent amendments to Ontario’s Batteries Regulation
The Ontario government has made amendments to the Batteries regulation which may impact registered producers, PROs, haulers, processors and refurbishers.
To view the approved amendments, visit the Environmental Registry of Ontario.
Per the Ontario government, the amendments were made to increase flexibility, reduce burden and simplify requirements for producers. In February, RPRA provided updates outlining the changes to management requirements for batteries producers to extending the management requirement of 45% for 2025 and combining the management requirements for single-use and rechargeable batteries.
Additional regulatory amendments that may impact registrants during the upcoming reporting period have been summarized below:
Changes to exemptions for small producers
Producers will determine if they are exempt from registering and reporting using a three-year rolling average supply weight for each category of batteries rather than using a management requirement calculation.
This means that producers of single-use batteries with an average supply data not exceeding 5000 kg and producers of rechargeable batteries with an average supply data not exceeding 2500 kg are exempt from registering and reporting to RPRA in that calendar year.
Producers who meet this exemption must retain their records for five years.
If you are a registered producer and you meet the exemption criteria outlined above, please email RPRA at registry@rpra.ca to determine if your registration should be deactivated.
Removal of recycling efficiency rate (RER) requirements
The requirement for individual processors to calculate and report on their recycling efficiency rates (RER) for batteries has been removed.
Effective this year and going forward, battery processors will no longer include their RER percentage as part of their performance data.
Producers (or PROs on their behalf) are no longer required to work with processors that meet a specified RER.
Additional amendments
The regulatory changes include additional amendments that may impact registrants, unrelated to supply and performance reporting.
In an effort to reduce administrative burden, the requirement to operators of battery collection sites to keep records if a person drops off more than 15 kg of batteries has been removed.
Other key amendments related to increasing the collection network flexibility include:
- The addition of a provision for producers (or PROs on their behalf) to provide on-demand collection services to First Nation communities in the Far North.
- The addition of a geographic offsetting provision to allow alternative collection sites in adjacent municipalities.
- Allowing all municipal collection sites, including those that are open on a seasonal basis or open for a limited number of days per week throughout the year, to count as permanent sites.
Guidance related to the provisions for increased collection network flexibility will be provided later this year.
For more information about Ontario’s Batteries Regulation visit our Batteries program webpage.