Hamilton joins call for deposit-return system to boost beverage container recycling in…

The City of Hamilton has joined other municipalities, including Ottawa, Toronto, and London, in calling on the Ontario government to implement a deposit-return system for non-alcoholic beverage containers. This call is spearheaded by the Canadian Beverage Association. The province has the lowest recycling rates in the country for these containers, with less than half currently being recycled. The City of Hamilton unanimously passed a motion to join the call, which the City Clerk's Office stated was being forwarded to the province.

The current system in Ontario relies solely on the residential blue box program. The proposed deposit-return system would introduce a financial incentive for both consumers and industrial returns of these containers. The province had previously considered such a plan in 2023 but ultimately scrapped it due to cost.