Summary#
Bill 32, the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Amendment Act (Beverage Container Deposit Program), 2025, would amend Ontario’s Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016. It would require a regulated deposit-and-refund program and certain stores to act as return depots; the bill’s stated subject is a beverage container deposit program.
- Cabinet would be able to make rules for a beverage container deposit program and for collection depots for blue box materials.
- The program would have to require a deposit of at least 10 cents for covered containers of one litre or less, and at least 25 cents for covered containers over one litre.
- Grocery stores meeting the bill’s detailed size and food-selection test, and stores operated by Brewers Retail Inc., would have to accept covered containers and refund the deposit, as set out in regulations.
- Brewers Retail Inc. and grocery store owners would have to ensure their stores comply. The supplied explanatory note says failing to comply would be an offence.
- The Act would start one year after Royal Assent. The supplied explanatory note says current law already lets Cabinet make rules about collecting blue box materials; the parent Act was not supplied, so I could not verify the current law against it.
What it means for you#
- People buying covered containers: The program would require a deposit to be paid and refunded. If you return a covered container to a required depot, that person must receive the applicable refund. The bill leaves the list of covered containers and the process to regulations.
- Grocery stores: A store would be covered only if it meets the bill’s definition, which includes more than 4,000 square feet of retail floor space and specified food-space and product-range tests. Covered stores would have to serve as depots and provide refunds under the regulations.
- Brewers Retail Inc. stores: Its stores would have the same depot and refund duties, as set out in regulations.
- Grocery store owners and Brewers Retail Inc.: They would have to ensure their stores comply. The bill does not itself set out the offence penalty.
- General public: The bill does not itself list all covered containers or set out how, when, or where returns must be made.
Money#
No publicly available information on public cost or savings.
- Deposits would have to be at least 10 cents for covered containers of one litre or less, and 25 cents for covered containers over one litre. Regulations would set the program details.
- Covered stores would have to provide depot and refund services. The bill gives no estimate for their costs or required staffing.
- The bill does not say how any unclaimed deposits would be handled.
What is unclear#
- Which containers would count as blue box materials, and therefore qualify for a deposit and refund?
- What rules would govern payment, returns, refunds, and depot operations?
- Would there be any exemptions, or how would the rules address stores that meet the definition but face practical barriers to serving as depots?
- What penalties would apply to an offence, and who would enforce it?
- How would the new depot rules interact with existing collection arrangements?
Case for#
- A deposit that is refunded when a container is returned could give people a financial reason to return covered containers.
- Requiring grocery stores and Brewers Retail Inc. stores to act as depots could make return points available through existing stores.
- Cabinet could set detailed program rules, while the bill sets minimum deposit amounts and required depot operators.
Case against#
- The bill leaves key choices—including which containers are covered and how returns work—to regulations, so the program’s reach and practical effect are not clear from the bill alone.
- A mandatory depot duty could impose costs and operating demands on covered stores; the bill provides no cost estimate or details on staffing and facilities.
- The bill creates an offence for non-compliance, but the supplied material does not identify the penalty or explain enforcement.