The Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) Regulation under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016 designates information technology, telecommunications, audio-visual (ITT/AV) and lighting equipment as the third and fourth materials after tires and batteries under Ontario’s individual producer responsibility regulatory framework.
Individual producer responsibility makes producers accountable for their products and packaging once consumers are finished with them; sets mandatory and enforceable requirements for resource recovery; and gives producers choices for resource recovery services in a competitive market.
As of January 1, 2021, following the wind up of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Program operated by the industry funding organization Ontario Electronic Stewardship (OES) on December 31, 2020, ITT/AV producers are individually accountable and financially responsible for collecting and reusing, refurbishing or recycling their products when consumers discard them.
OES did not operate a program for lighting and the responsibilities for lighting do not come into effect until January 1, 2023 with producers and services providers of lighting registering with the Authority by November 30, 2022. More information will be made available on lighting in the future.
Information technology, telecommunications, audio-visual equipment (ITT/AV)
ITT/AV is equipment that has a primary purpose of collecting, storing, processing, presenting or communicating information, including sounds and images, recording or reproducing sounds and images. ITT/AV includes equipment supplied into any sector (e.g., residential, business, hospital, institutional, commercial, industrial, etc.) and includes any batteries supplied with the ITT/AV (i.e., in packaging or in product).
Requirements
- Producers to establish and operate systems to collect and manage ITT/AV discarded by consumers starting January 1, 2021
- ITT/AV producers to register with the Authority before January 31, 2021
- Producers, or producer responsibility organizations (PROs) on their behalf, to report annually on performance to the Authority starting in 2022 for ITT/AV
Haulers, processors and refurbishers were required to register with the Authority by November 30, 2020.
PROs will need to register within 30 days of being retained by a producer. To assist ITT/AV producers in identifying the PROs they want to work with to meet their collection and management requirements that begin on January 1, 2021, ITT/AV PROs are encouraged to register with the Authority as soon as possible.
There are no registration and reporting requirements for First Nations, municipalities or other EEE collectors under the EEE Regulation.
How does the EEE Regulation affect you?
A person is considered an ITT/AV producer under the EEE Regulation if they supply ITT/AV into Ontario and:
- are the brand holder of the ITT/AV and have residency in Canada
- have residency in Ontario and import ITT/AV from outside of Ontario
- have residency in Ontario and markets directly to consumers in Ontario (e.g. online sales)
- does not have residency in Ontario and markets directly to consumers in Ontario (e.g. online sales)
- An ITT/AV hauler is a person that arranges the transport of ITT/AV used in Ontario that are destined for processing, reuse, refurbishing or disposal.
- An ITT/AV refurbisher is a person that prepares or refurbishes used ITT/AV for reuse for the purposes of resource recovery.
- An ITT/AV processor is a person that processes ITT/AV used in Ontario for the purposes of resource recovery.
If you are a First Nation or municipality that collects EEE at a depot or through collection events or if you are a retailer or organization that provides collection boxes at your location you do not have registration or reporting requirements under the EEE Regulation as a collector. You may have responsibilities if you are a collector of ITT/AV who is also a producer or a hauler.
A PRO is a business established to contract with producers to provide collection, management and administrative services to help producers meet their regulatory obligations under the EEE Regulation, including:
- Arranging the establishment or operation of ITT/AV collection and management systems (hauling, recycling, reuse or refurbishment services).
- Establishing or operating a collection or management system
- Preparing and submitting reports and payment
WEEE Program wind up
The Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks directed OES to wind up the WEEE Program on December 31, 2020 to enable the transition of end-of-life electrical and electronic equipment to individual producer responsibility under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016 starting on January 1, 2021.
Under the Waste Diversion Transition Act, 2016 (WDTA), the Authority is responsible for overseeing the orderly wind up of legacy waste diversion programs and the industry funding organizations (IFOs) responsible for managing those programs.
OES submitted their plan to wind up the WEEE program and OES itself to the Authority in December 2018. Between March and April 2019, the Authority consulted on the plan with municipalities, stewards and other affected stakeholders. Visit the consultation page to learn more about the consultation process and to read the final consultation report.
The Authority approved OES’s Wind-Up Plan in August 2019, with conditions. Learn more:
During the transition period, OES will continue to operate the WEEE Program without disruption. Any questions on the implementation of the wind-up plan can be directed to: oeswindup@ontarioes.ca or call: 1-888-646-1820, ext. 11.
Minister’s direction on single-use batteries
On December 11, 2018, the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks amended the timelines associated with the wind up of the Municipal Hazardous or Special Waste (MHSW) Program. As per the Minister’s direction, the program for single-use batteries operated by Stewardship Ontario was wound up on June 30, 2020. This timeline change allowed for a coordinated policy approach with the wind up of the WEEE Program. Read the letter or visit our Batteries program page for more information.