RPRA Amendments to Ontario’s Tires Regulation

The Ontario Government has made amendments to the Tires Regulation which may impact registered producers, PROs, collectors, haulers, processors and retreaders.

To view the approved amendments, visit the Environmental Registry of Ontario.

As per the Ontario government, the amendments were made to increase flexibility, reduce burden and simplify requirements for producers. In February, RPRA provided updates outlining changes to collection and management requirements. Collection targets have been eliminated, and new management requirements are in effect for the 2025 – 2029 performance years. Learn more.

Additional regulatory amendments that may impact registrants during the upcoming reporting period have been summarized below:

Changes to exemptions for small producers

Producers will determine if they are exempt from registering and reporting using a three-year rolling average supply weight rather than using a collection requirement calculation.

This means that producers with an average supply weight of less than 1,175 kg are exempt from registering and reporting to RPRA in that calendar year. Producers must verify that they continue to meet the exemption annually, since their average weight of supply will change from year to year. Producers who meet this exemption must retain records for five years.

If you are a registered producer that meets the exemption criteria outlined above, please email RPRA at [email protected] to determine if your registration should be deactivated.

Increasing the threshold for obligated tires

Small tires have been newly defined as tires that weigh one kilogram or more but less than five kilograms. Small tires are exempt from being reported as supplied into Ontario.

This means that small tires supplied into Ontario in 2023 or later do not need to be reported by producers in their annual supply reports.

Producers (or their service providers) must continue to accept and manage small tires that are returned by consumers.

Producers (or PROs on their behalf) can include small tires collected and managed for the purposes of satisfying their management requirement for the performance year.

Simplifying tire reporting requirements for tire haulers, retreaders and processors

To streamline reporting for tire haulers, processors and retreaders, the reporting categories for four tire types have been merged. to two; large tires (tires weighing more than 700 kg) and tires other than large (tires weighing 700 kg or less).

This amendment aligns how haulers, processors and retreaders have been reporting to RPRA annually.

Changes to registration and reporting requirements for tire collectors

Tire collectors are no longer required to register and report annually to RPRA. Tire collectors that want to participate in a producer’s tire collection system, should contact a PRO.

Tire collectors must retain records for five years as RPRA maintains the ability to inspect and request information from tire collectors as needed.

There is no action required for registered tire collectors at this time, and they should not contact RPRA.

Additional amendments

The regulatory changes include additional amendments that may impact registrants, unrelated to supply and performance reporting.

In an effort to reduce administrative burden, the requirement for tire collectors to keep records if a person drops off more than 10 tires has been removed.

Other key amendments related to increasing collection network flexibility include:

• The addition of a provision for producers (or PROs on behalf of producers) to provide on-demand collection services to First Nation communities in the Far North.
• The addition of a geographic offsetting provision to allow alternative collection sites in adjacent municipalities.
• The addition of a new provision allowing public collection events to replace up to 25 per cent of required collection sites.
• Allowing all municipal collection sites, including those that are open on a seasonal basis or open for a limited number of days per week throughout the year, to count as permanent sites.
• The addition of a new provision to reduce the number of collection sites required in municipalities with populations of more than 500,000.

Guidance related to the provisions for increased collection network flexibility will be provided later this year.

For more information about Ontario’s Tire Regulation visit our Tires webpage.

Source: RPRA