Preventing Waste Outside the Home
Overview
Who: The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change
What: Preventing waste from packaging outside the home
Where: Province-wide
Why: To inform the development of policy approaches that will improve the prevention and recycling of non-residential packaging waste in communities across B.C.
How: Online, survey, written submissions, webinars
Engagement summary
In British Columbia, we send over 2.5 million tonnes of solid waste from our homes and businesses to landfills and incinerators each year.
While most people in British Columbia have access to recycling at home, up to half of packaging used outside the home is being sent to landfills. This includes at sites like offices, schools, restaurants and stores.
Learn more about the issue by reading our discussion paper (PDF, 4MB).
Ways to participate
This engagement is open to everyone across the province, with specific opportunities for contributions from:
- Residents
- Local governments
- Indigenous governments
- Businesses
- Other impacted organizations
One of the specific audiences we want to hear from is Indigenous Peoples, including Rights and Title holders; Métis, Inuit, and First Nations in urban settings. In addition to the other engagement opportunities offered, we welcome you to attend a roundtable session specifically for Indigenous participants. If you are interested in attending, please email CircularEconomy@gov.bc.ca.
Online questionnaire
All people in British Columbia are welcome to share their feedback through the online questionnaire. The survey is open until July 23, 2024.
Info sessions
Representatives of local and Indigenous governments, businesses, and organizations may attend an upcoming info session to learn more about non-residential waste in B.C. and policy options for prevention.
Written submissions
Businesses, local and Indigenous governments, and other organizations may submit a formal response to the discussion paper (PDF, 4MB).
Visit the Preventing Waste Outside the Home engagement website site to learn more.
How your contribution makes a difference
Your input, and feedback gathered from people like you, will be used to help develop policies to prevent this packaging waste from entering our landfills. Participating in this engagement is one action you can take to help create a cleaner, more sustainable province for generations to come.
A What We Learned report will be published in Fall 2024. Potential policies to prevent non-residential packaging waste will be released in 2025.
Learn more ways to make a difference on preventing plastic waste by visiting gov.bc.ca/reuse.