Ontario’s remaining surplus funds from the former Ontario Tire Stewardship (OTS) programme will be redirected to producer responsibility organisations (PROs) to help cover the additional costs associated with the province’s increased tyre management target
In a direction issued on 1 October, Todd McCarthy, Ontario Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, instructed OTS to amend its wind-up plan following recent disruptions to tyre collection and recycling activities across the province. The remaining surplus funds will generally be distributed to PROs registered with the Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA).
The move follows Ontario’s decision on 21 September to increase the tyre management target from 65% to 80%, starting in 2026 and continuing in subsequent years. The ministry said the higher target aims to improve tyre collection and reduce disruptions by requiring producers and PROs to manage more tyres.
Under the minister’s direction, funding will be provided to PROs on a per-tonne basis for processed tyres that count towards the increase from the previous 65% target to 80%. The ministry estimates that the rate could be approximately $500 per tonne, based on cost data from the former OTS programme adjusted for inflation. OTS may set a different rate if it considers this a better reflection of current costs.
The funds will only apply to tyres that have been collected and processed, rather than retreaded or reused, while PROs will have to provide documentation showing that the relevant collection and processing activities have been contracted and completed.
The direction also specifies that funding will not be available for tyres that would have been managed under the previous 65% requirement or for volumes exceeding what a producer needs to meet its 80% target. OTS will work with RPRA to determine when PROs have reached the relevant thresholds.
OTS must submit its amended wind-up plan to RPRA for approval by 26 November 2026. Any surplus remaining after the wind-up and the funding arrangements are completed would ultimately be paid to RPRA to offset producers’ annual fees for the authority’s oversight activities.
Adam Moffatt of the Ontario Tire Dealers Association (OTDA) and Tire Dealers Association of Canada (TDAC) welcomed the decision, saying he was “pleased to see Minister McCarthy take this action and redirect these funds toward helping get tyres moving through Ontario’s recycling system.”
He added that the key question was “how quickly this additional funding translates into increased collection activity on the ground”, with attention now turning to RPRA and the PROs to clarify how the funding will be implemented and when collection sites can expect relief from current challenges.
