CKRW File Photo
WHITEHORSE, YT – The City of Whitehorse will be receiving funds from the Government of Yukon to help offset the costs for a new municipal curbside recycling program.
The Yukon Government recognized that recycling options in Whitehorse would be severely limited by the unexpected closure of Raven ReCentre’s recycling drop-off service, and they’ve committed $2.4 million over two years, pending legislative approval, that will go towards getting a municipal curbside recycling program up and running.
In a letter addressed to Whitehorse Mayor Laura Cabott from Minister of Community Services Richard Mostyn, he confirmed the funding is meant to cover half of the cost for curbside collection and processing. Minister Mostyn adds that upon the adoption of Extended Producer Responsibility regulation in 2025, funding for the curbside recycling program will be covered by the revenue it generates.
Under the Territorial EPR, producers of goods will be responsible for the cost of recycling their products, but Mayor Laura Cabott confirmed there’s still quite a bit of uncertainty over how that will take shape here in Whitehorse, and if the full cost of the program will be covered.
“It really is unclear to what extent EPR would cover the complete costs once the regulations are in play, and the government’s funding stops. So $2.4 million. But when the Yukon government w discontinues their funding, we have no idea how much EPR is going to cover. In some jurisdictions EPR only covers a portion of the of the service that’s provided, leaving municipalities to foot the rest of the bill. So that is the risk that we would be looking at.” – Whitehorse Mayor Laura Cabott
The city has requested clarification on the Extended Producer Responsibility regulation from the Territorial government, and city staff have been invited to an EPR information session with the Yukon Government on March 8th.
For now, the city is preparing to move forward on a city managed curbside recycling program for a duration of 1.5 years, with an exit plan in place for when the EPR regulation is fully implemented. An administrative recommendation on curbside recycling is expected in Whitehorse City Council on March 25th.
