Canadian government plans to establish federal plastics registry and release regulatory framework for plastic packaging; aim to improve knowledge of plastic waste, value recovery, and pollution; measures are open for comment until May 18, 2023; NGO urges government to expand ban on non-recyclable plastic packaging and take further action.

On April 18, 2023, the Canadian government published a technical paper on its plans of moving forward with establishing a federal plastics registry to improve knowledge of plastic waste, value recovery, and pollution across the country. The registry will provide important information to inform future compliance promotion and enforcement activities and will help identify gaps in the plastics value chain where further government action may be required. Currently, data collection requirements for extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs are inconsistent across Canada, making it difficult to measure their performance across the country. The federal plastics registry aims to standardize the data collected on such programs and provide useful information for stakeholders and the government. The data will be open and accessible to all Canadians, including researchers. ....