Canadian Scrap Tyre Stewardship: How Provincial Programmes Create Demand

By:     Kieran Donnelly

Why Canada’s Tyre Stewardship Model Differs from Other Markets

Canada does not have a single national tyre stewardship scheme. Unlike Australia, where Tyre Stewardship Australia operates as a federally approved national arrangement, or the UK, where the industry manages tyre waste through commercial markets and duty of care obligations, Canada’s approach to scrap tyre management is almost entirely a provincial matter. Each province has designed and operates its own programme, with its own levy structure, its own collection infrastructure, and its own approved end markets for processed tyre material.

The result is a patchwork of provincial programmes that vary considerably in their design, their funding levels, and their operational maturity. Ontario’s programme differs from British Columbia’s. Alberta’s approach differs from Quebec’s. A tyre recycler operating across multiple provinces must understand and navigate several distinct programme frameworks simultaneously, and the economics of tyre recycling investment vary by province depending on the specific stewardship payment rates and the collection volumes each programme generates.

For businesses investing in tyre processing equipment in Canada, understanding the provincial stewardship landscape is not optional background knowledge; it is directly relevant to the financial case for equipment investment. Stewardship payments to processors supplement gate fee income and commodity revenue, and the rate and reliability of those payments vary by province. Equipment investment decisions should be made with a clear understanding of the specific provincial programme the operation will participate in.

Gradeall International supplies tyre processing equipment to Canadian operations from its manufacturing base in Dungannon, Northern Ireland. The MKII tyre baler, truck tyre sidewall cutter, tyre rim separator, and the full tyre recycling equipment range serve Canadian tyre processors and generators. With nearly 40 years of manufacturing experience and equipment operating in over 100 countries, Gradeall’s experience spans multiple tyre stewardship frameworks internationally and supports Canadian operators navigating their specific provincial requirements.

The Structure of Canadian Provincial Tyre Stewardship

Despite their differences in design, Canadian provincial tyre stewardship programmes share a common underlying structure that reflects the extended producer responsibility principle applied consistently across the country.

The environmental handling fee. Most provincial programmes collect funding through an environmental handling fee (EHF) or similar charge applied at the point of new tyre sale. The retailer adds the EHF to the customer’s invoice; the fee is visible to the consumer as a separate line item. The EHF is remitted by retailers to the provincial stewardship programme administrator, accumulating the fund from which recycler payments, collection infrastructure support, and programme administration costs are covered.

The approved processor network. Provincial programmes designate approved or accredited processors who are eligible to receive stewardship payments for processing tyres collected through the programme. Processors must meet the programme’s requirements for processing capability, environmental compliance (provincial environmental permits or licences), data management (reporting of volumes processed), and adherence to the programme’s code of practice.

Collection from retail points. Tyre retailers are typically obligated under provincial programmes to accept used tyres from customers at the point of new tyre purchase, free of charge to the customer. The programme funds the collection of accumulated tyres from retail collection points, either through direct collection contracts or through payments to transporters who deliver tyres to approved processors.

End market requirements. Provincial programmes typically specify eligible end markets for processed tyre material, distinguishing between full recycling (crumb rubber for product applications, civil engineering bale use) and energy recovery (tyre-derived fuel). The payment rates for different processing routes may reflect the province’s policy preference for material recycling over energy recovery.

Ontario: Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority

Ontario is Canada’s most populous province and its largest tyre waste generator. The province’s tyre stewardship programme has evolved over time; the current framework operates under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act 2016, administered by the Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA).

Ontario’s approach has moved toward a more market-based model than the earlier Ontario Tire Stewardship (OTS) programme that operated until 2018. The transition to the individual producer responsibility (IPR) model under RPRA has changed the dynamics for tyre processors; rather than a single programme with standardised payment rates, Ontario’s framework creates more direct commercial relationships between tyre brand owners and the processors they contract with for end-of-life management.

For Ontario tyre processors, the transition to IPR means building commercial relationships with multiple tyre brand owners and importers who now hold individual responsibility for their own tyre volumes. The processor that can demonstrate consistent, high-quality processing capability with strong data management and reporting is better positioned in this commercial environment than one relying on a single programme’s standardised arrangements.

Ontario’s large urban market, centred on the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton, Ottawa, and other major cities, provides substantial tyre collection volumes from a dense network of tyre retail points. The economics of collecting from densely populated urban Ontario are more favourable than collection from rural areas; processors located within a reasonable transport distance of major urban centres benefit from lower per-tyre collection costs.

British Columbia: Tyre Stewardship BC

Tyre Stewardship BC (TSBC) is the approved stewardship organisation for used tyres in British Columbia, operating under the Recycling Regulation made under BC’s Environmental Management Act. TSBC manages the collection network from approximately 2,000 collection sites across BC, including tyre retailers, automotive service centres, and dedicated collection depots.

British Columbia’s tyre stewardship programme has operated for many years and has achieved high collection rates. The TSBC EHF is applied at the point of new tyre sale; the accumulated funds support collection logistics, processor payments, and programme administration.

BC’s tyre recycling industry processes collected tyres through crumb rubber production, civil engineering applications, and tyre-derived fuel. The province’s geography, with dense population in the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island alongside extensive rural and remote areas in the interior, creates collection logistics challenges outside the Lower Mainland that TSBC addresses through a structured collection depot network.

For tyre processors investing in BC, TSBC-approved processor status is the pathway to stewardship payment income. The application process requires demonstration of environmental compliance (provincial waste management permit from the BC Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy) and processing capability. BC’s strong environmental regulatory culture means permit requirements are enforced actively; processors must maintain genuine operational compliance rather than nominal permit holding.

Alberta: Tyre Recycling Management Association

The Tyre Recycling Management Association (TRMA) administers Alberta’s tyre stewardship programme under the Tyre Recycling Management Regulation. Alberta’s programme collects an advance disposal fee (ADF) on new tyre sales, which funds collection and processing across the province.

Alberta’s economy includes a significant oil and gas sector, an agricultural industry, and growing manufacturing and logistics operations, all of which generate tyre waste alongside the general vehicle fleet. The province’s large geographic area and relatively dispersed population outside Calgary and Edmonton create collection logistics that favour processors able to organise efficient multi-point collection routes across the province.

Alberta’s tyre recycling industry includes crumb rubber producers and civil engineering bale producers. The province’s active road construction and infrastructure programme creates potential demand for civil engineering tyre bales; developing relationships with Alberta’s infrastructure contractors is a commercial development priority for baling-focused processors in the province.

Quebec: Recyc-Québec and the Tyre Programme

Quebec’s tyre management is administered under the Quebec Environment Quality Act and coordinated through Recyc-Québec, the provincial crown corporation responsible for waste reduction and recycling. Quebec’s approach to tyre stewardship has evolved alongside the province’s broader extended producer responsibility framework, which covers multiple product categories under a coordinated structure.

Quebec’s francophone market context means that programme documentation, regulatory communications, and commercial relationships in the tyre recycling sector operate in French. Tyre processors operating in Quebec must be prepared to engage with programme administrators, regulators, and commercial partners in French; bilingual operational capability is a practical requirement for pan-Canadian tyre recycling businesses.

Quebec’s tyre recycling market includes established crumb rubber processors and a growing civil engineering bale market. The province’s significant road infrastructure maintenance programme, including both the provincial autoroute network and municipal roads, creates ongoing demand for construction materials that engineered tyre bale applications can serve.

Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Atlantic Canada

Manitoba’s Used Tyre Program and Saskatchewan’s Tyre Stewardship both operate provincial programmes broadly similar in structure to the larger provincial programmes, with EHF collection at retail and payments to approved processors for collection and recycling.

The Atlantic provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador) each operate their own tyre stewardship arrangements. The smaller scale of these provincial programmes and the dispersed geography of Atlantic Canada create collection economics that are challenging by comparison with densely populated central and western provinces; processor payments may be higher per tyre in these provinces to reflect the higher collection costs.

How Stewardship Payments Affect the Equipment Investment Case

For a Canadian tyre processor assessing the investment case for Gradeall tyre baling or processing equipment, the provincial stewardship payment is a specific revenue line in the financial model with characteristics that differ from gate fees and commodity revenue.

Stewardship payments are set by the provincial programme administrator, reviewed periodically, and paid to approved processors per tyre or per tonne processed. They are generally more stable than commodity prices but are not contractually guaranteed over the long term; programme reviews can adjust payment rates. For equipment investment decisions with payback periods of three to seven years, the stability of stewardship payments over the investment horizon is a relevant risk factor to assess.

The combination of gate fee income (where processors charge generators), stewardship payments (from the provincial programme), and commodity revenue (from bale sales, crumb rubber sales, or steel scrap) constitutes the full revenue stack for a Canadian tyre processor. Gradeall’s MKII tyre baler and associated equipment enable access to all three revenue streams for a baling-focused Canadian operation.

The civil engineering ball market in Canada is at varying stages of development by province. Ontario and British Columbia have the most established civil engineering markets and the most active infrastructure programmes; Quebec’s road network creates ongoing maintenance demand; the prairie provinces and Atlantic Canada have growing but less mature civil engineering markets.

“Canada’s provincial stewardship model has created a structured tyre recycling market that provides real financial support for processing investment,” says Conor Murphy, Director of Gradeall International. “The stewardship payment adds a layer of revenue stability on top of gate fees and commodity income that improves the investment case for quality processing equipment. Understanding the specific programme in the province you’re operating in is essential; the details vary enough between provinces to affect your financial model meaningfully.”

Contact Gradeall International for tyre processing equipment for Canadian operations and for guidance on how provincial stewardship programmes affect equipment investment economics.

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