International Auto Recycling By Steve Fletcher, Executive Director, Ontario Automotive Recyclers Association
Government & Industry Collaboration in Ontario
he Ontario Ministry of the Environ- ment & Climate Change (MOECC) approached the Ontario Automotive Recyclers Association (OARA) to see if they could make a joint presentation to the auto recycling industry at the 2014 ARA Convention in Nashville. We read- ily accepted the offer as we have gen- uinely been impressed with the level of collaboration that exists in Ontario between government and industry. OARA has been involved with the MOECC for three to four years to bring effective government oversight to the auto recycling sector. Like many jurisdic- tions around the world, auto recyclers in Ontario suffer from an unlevel playing field from unlicensed or underground businesses competing for access to the vehicles that are the lifeblood of our industry. In Ontario, a historical Wrecker Licence exists, but it does not address environmental management at sites. The government recognizes that standardiz- ing the way auto recyclers are required to manage environmental issues could reduce risks. OARA also concludes that the limited regulation of the industry only encourages the “race to the bottom” where everyone loses. The MOECC’s mandate is environ- mental protection but the government also needs to balance regulatory decisions against other government priorities such as job creation, regulatory burden reduc- tion, and setting a healthy business cli- mate. Against this backdrop, OARA and a wide variety of industry stakeholders have been working with Ontario to bring about positive change. This activity also coincides with the national associations efforts to bring change across Canada. OARA proposed to the MOECC the need for a standards-based license for any participant in the ELV supply chain, including dismantlers, crushers and shred- der. The standards were based on CAREC – the Canadian Auto Recyclers
T 28 Automotive Recycling | January-February 2015
Environmental Code, and therefore has a track record of implementation by differ- ent sector participants. As a result of MOECC’s proposal analy- sis and consultation, the MOECC devel- oped a proposal for ELV processing standards that culminated in a discussion paper and consultations in early 2014. The principal elements of the paper include: 1. Vehicles must be depolluted prior to crushing or shredding; 2. All recycling businesses must register with the ministry; 3. Site requirements for waste storage, working under covered structures, per- sonnel training, mitigation of noise, torch- ing emissions and dust control; and 4. Provincial officers enforce compliance over a phased implementation. The ministry needed comprehensive feedback from as wide a range of views as possible. While the discussion paper was published on a government consultation website, they needed direct input from people in the business and anyone that could be impacted by the proposal. The MOECC held public meetings through- out the province to explain the proposal and have a discussion, and OARA was crit- ical in getting the word out to their mem- bers and to the broader sector. OARA also helped the MOECC anticipate areas of concern likely to be raised at meetings. The MOECC heard that there is sup- port for the proposal, though not unani- mous, for moving the proposal forward provided it is modified to address con- cerns. The government is now drafting the regulations that will encompass much of the feedback they received during the consultation process. They have also com- mitted to further consultation on draft regulations prior to moving forward. Some of the conclusions that the MOECC have drawn from this process? 1. Good regulations require deep understanding of the businesses and peo- ple they impact;
2. Partnership with OARA has opened
Chris Goode, left, MOECC Project Leader, with OARA’s Steve Fletcher at ARA’s Annual Conference.
doors for conducting site visits, even with non-OARA members, and motivated the industry to talk frankly with us; 3. Partnership has allowed us to find common ground and move toward some- thing that increases environmental pro- tection but is supported by industry; 4. An adversarial approach could have compromised our ability to understand the sector and to get support for passing regulations.
Some of the conclusions that we as auto recyclers have drawn from this process? 1. Government has been open to hear- ing from the industry on what the myriad of problems are, plus the different solu- tions that are required;
2. Direct discussions allow the dialogue to move from “Government needs to solve this” to “We need to solve this with gov- ernment’s help and structure.” 3. Good solutions are not handed down from government in a vacuum – it is more of an iterative process to get it right. “Presenting with OARA at the ARA con- ference in Nashville was an excellent opportunity for the MOECC. It gave us a chance to showcase how we are taking a collaborative approach to developing new environmental standards and it was a great forum to talk to people from around the world about vehicle recycling and to learn from their experience. What we learned about the latest industry trends, best practices and technological advances at the conference will help inform any future regulations for the processing of end-of-life vehicles in Ontario,” says Chris Goode, MOECC Project Leader. ■
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72