Ottawa, provinces take aim at plastic waste
HALIFAX • The federal government and the provinces and territories say they have pieced together an action plan to gradually harmonize the recycling and reduction of plastic waste, with details yet to emerge.
Environment Minister Catherine McKenna said Thursday at a Halifax meeting of environment ministers the governments agree there should be consistent standards and targets for companies that produce plastic waste or use it to package their products.
“For the first time, we now have this national zero-plastic action plan to eliminate plastic waste. This is the first phase of it,” she said.
She also told reporters that over time the plan could ensure that companies are held responsible for managing and collecting their waste and paying the costs involved.
However, the document is written in general language, with the earliest goals for achieving the various targets being December 2020 and most extending to December 2021.
Tensions also continued around the table between McKenna and ministers from conservative governments over the federal carbon tax.
Jeff Carr, New Brunswick’s environment minister, said after the meeting that he’d used the occasion to take McKenna to task over the use of carbon taxes being collected in his province.
Some of those funds are being sent back to the province to finance energy retrofitting of schools.
“New Brunswick can spend its own money on own energy efficiency priorities without the help of Justin Trudeau and Catherine McKenna,” Carr said during his closing remarks.
McKenna — who skipped the closing news conference — said too much time was wasted on these kinds of discussions during the meeting.
“Had New Brunswick stepped up, they would have been able to determine what to do with the carbon tax revenues,” she said during her conference call.
There were concerns before the meeting that the high level of antagonism between McKenna and conservative governments over the federal carbon tax might harm talks on other environmental issues.
Five of the provinces at the table are challenging or plan to challenge Ottawa in court over its “backstop” carbon tax, and a decision in Ontario’s case is coming Friday.