Town staff told council Tuesday that Niagara-on-the-Lake should not take over non-residential recycling. This will leave NOTL businesses in the downtown core looking for private providers for all recyclables by the end of the year.
The town’s director of corporate services Kyle Freeborn said staff are focusing on helping businesses transition to private recycling services.
At the start of this year, the province transferred the responsibility for the collection of non-residential recycling to private, producer-led or contracted services. This change affected businesses, non-profits and institutions.
Right now, the Town of NOTL is collecting cardboard for recycling from businesses in Old Town’s downtown designated business area. This service will end on Dec. 31. That program is funded through municipal accommodation tax revenue.
A staff report estimates a new non-residential recycling program would have cost the town between $219,310 and $360,000 annually — the lower figure is for biweekly collection and the higher is for weekly pickup.
In the report, staff says there are limitations to the idea of the municipality becoming the recycling collection service provider, stating many businesses already have contracts with private recycling collecters, that the town running the service would be against the province’s intent with the new system and that there are operational and governance risks if the town becomes an intermediary between businesses and contracters.
“Recycling services are readily available in the private
market, and there is limited benefit — and increased risk — for the town to act as an intermediary in what is intended to be a direct business-to-provider relationship,” the report said.
Freeborn said the town spent $11,000 for cardboard recycling in 2025. In 2026, because cardboard will no longer be collected on the same trucks as residential recycling, the cost for the town to provide them will rise to “$68,000 or so.” The remaining difference will be covered by municipal accommodation tax funding.
Costs will go back down by 2027, he said, after the program is over.
Coun. Andrew Niven asked whether the cardboard program will end abruptly after Dec. 31 or be phased out during the year.
Freeborn said the town will give notices to businesses in the program following Tuesday’s meeting and again closer to the program’s end.
Coun. Gary Burroughs also questioned how the town would distinguish between commercial and residential cardboard.
“My concern is: How do you identify a commercial business downstairs putting out cardboard and a residence above putting out cardboard?” he asked. “I think we’re going to have a problem.”
Freeborn said identifying eligible materials is an issue for Niagara Region and Circular Materials, the not-for-profit organization managing the privatization in Ontario.
He said eligible bins will have stickers on them and advised residents to contact the region if they encounter problems.
