The province of Quebec is rolling out a plan to divert more agricultural plastics through an extended producer responsibility program.
The regulation covers all agricultural sectors, a press release noted. It aims to make recycling more accessible and reliable for farmers by requiring that manufacturers and distributors of the relevant products fund the development and implementation of a comprehensive system for their collection and recycling.
That includes plastics used for the preservation or wrapping of silage or hay, such as films, nets, twine, bags and webs; bags intended for agricultural use, such as grain bags, silo bags and bags of supplements; containers, cans, barrels and tanks intended for agricultural use; and many other similar items.
The program was part of a broader suite of regulations passed in June 2022. As of Oct. 1, an eco-fee has been applied to those products to help fund the program.
Nonprofit AgriRÉCUP is tasked with managing the program. Christine Lajeunesse, AgriRÉCUP eastern director, said in a press release that “farmers are citizens who care about the environment because it goes hand-in-hand with the health of farmland and the desire to pass on their business from generation to generation.”
“They want their plastics and packaging to be recycled or recovered,” she added.
