What are the blue box changes?

From July 2023 to the end of December 2025, all municipalities in Ontario will transition their blue box program to a new collection model. Under the new model, the companies that produce blue box materials will be required to fully fund and operate the recycling system.

In Strong, the transition to a new blue box collector will occur by January 2025. You may also notice other municipalities’ blue box programs transitioning beginning in July 2023.

In 2026, there will be two new enhancements to the blue box program, including:

• Ontarians will be able to recycle more types of materials and this list of materials will be the same across Ontario for the first time.
• There will be free blue box collection for schools (public, separate, and private that teach Kindergarten to Grade 12), non-profit retirement and long-term care homes, and multi-residential properties (e.g., apartments and condos).

Who is responsible for blue box collection?

As of July 2023, the companies that produce blue box materials sold in Ontario will be responsible and held accountable for collecting these materials and recycling them into new products.

These companies, also known as Producers, will fulfill their regulatory obligations collectively through Producer Responsibility Organizations (PROs). The PROs have come together to run a single, new, province-wide common collection system. The approved common collection system administrator is a non-profit company called Circular Materials.

Circular Materials will be responsible for the collection of blue box materials from homes and residential buildings across Ontario, including the residential portion of mixed commercial and residential properties.

If you live, work, or visit another municipality, please check local resources for instructions on how to use the new recycling system. By January 2026, all municipalities in Ontario will be switched over to this new producer responsibility collection system.

The Government of Ontario has introduced provincial legislation that changes how blue box materials are managed and collected in Ontario.

The Blue Box Regulation, made under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, is a key pillar of the Government of Ontario’s Strategy for a Waste Free Ontario: Building the Circular Economy. Under the regulation, municipalities and First Nation communities in Ontario will move from the current system, which splits costs between municipal taxpayers and Producers of blue box materials, to a new system which requires the Producers to pay for and operate the system and achieve performance targets. Producers will be responsible for collecting and recycling blue box materials, reporting to the Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority, and meeting increasing targets for materials they collect and recycle.

Placing full financial, operational, and performance accountability for the blue box program on the Producers of blue box materials creates a direct incentive to reduce waste and improve recycling which decreases natural resource extraction and pollution, including greenhouse gases.

Industrial, commercial, and institutional properties

Industrial, commercial, and institutional (IC&I) waste is regulated separately from residential waste in Ontario.

As of January 2025, the Township’s recycling collection program will end, and IC&I will not be served by Circular Materials as per the Government of Ontario’s regulation.

The Government of Ontario’s Strategy for a Waste Free Ontario envisions a new approach to modernize the way these properties recycle, however the current Blue Box Regulation does not include IC&I properties as eligible collection sources (excluding Kindergarten to Grade 12 schools and non-profit retirement and long-term care).

Resources

• Blue Box Regulation
• Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act
• Strategy for a Waste Free Ontario: Building the Circular Economy
• Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority
• Circular Materials

A drive thru recycling center allows users to drop off recycling into sorted bins;  

• Metal - tin or aluminum cans
• Paper - newspaper, magazines, egg cartons, shredded paper
• Cardboard - corrugated
• Soft Plastics - bags, bubble wrap
• Hard Plastics - number 1-7 plastics
• Glass - clear or coloured jars or bottles

Household batteries and florescent tubes are accepted and can be disposed of on the right hand side when driving through the recycling center 

Household recycling is permitted, however commercial items are not permitted.

The landfill accepts electronic waste, it is placed in a bin, which is shipped away to be recycled.

The following items are accepted; televisions, stereos, computers, printers, monitors, wireless modems, cellular devices, telephones, answering machines, DVD/VHS players, gaming systems, cameras, clock radios, calculators etc. 

Please remember to wipe your hard drive and clear your SIM cards. Always clear all personal information from computers, cell phones and electronics prior to drop off!   

The cost of landfill cards are based on location, the following fees apply to approved users located with in the Townships of Strong & Joly and the Village of Sundridge;

• Strong Residents - $10.00
• Sundridge Residents - $20.00
• Joly Residents - $20.00
• All Permitted Trailers - $20.00
• Reactivation due to card misuse - $50.00

Landfill cards are not permitted to be loaned or given to anyone for any reason, only people living within the same residence can use the landfill card.  If a card is misused or users do not follow landfill regulations, the card will be deactivated.  A review regarding misuse will be conducted and will determine whether it will be reactivated, with fee payable prior to reactivation. 

Tipping fees are applied pursuant to Fees By-law 2021-011 Schedule H; 

• Shingles - $2.50 per cubic foot
• Construction Material/Waste - $1.50 per cubic foot
• Sorted Household Garbage and Recycling (under 6'x4'/10 yard bin) - no charge
• Sorted Household Waste (tandem trailer/utility trailer over 6'x4') - $300.00
• Sorted Household Waste (10 yard bin) - $300.00
• Sorted Household Waste (20 yard bin) - $500.00
• Sorted Household Waste (40 yard bin) - $800.00
• Toilet - $10.00 per item
• Loveseat - $15.00 per item
• Couch - $25.00 per item
• Mattress/Box Spring/Futon - $15.00 - $35.00 (price by size determined by landfill staff)
• All Appliances with Freon - $35.00

Note: For disposal and tipping fees for asbestos, please contact the Township of Strong Municipal Office directly 705-384-5819.

The following is prohibited for disposal at the landfill;

• Trees
• Logs
• Stumps
• Railway ties
• Tires
• Used deep fryer cooking oil (commercial operations)
• Travel trailers
• Boats
• Contaminated soil
• Household Hazardous Waste (only on designated ARI disposal dates) 

• Metal - tin or aluminum cans
• Paper - newspaper, magazines, egg cartons, shredded paper
• Cardboard - corrugated
• Soft Plastics - bags, bubble wrap
• Hard Plastics - number 1-7 plastics
• Glass - clear or coloured jars or bottles

Household recycling is permitted, however commercial items are not permitted.