Extended producer responsibility for E-waste management: Policy drivers and challenges

Abstract

Abstract A range of extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs have been developed for managing electronic waste. In Canada, where efforts have led to more harmonised EPR programs, one province (Quebec) has introduced regulatory measures beyond those adopted elsewhere in the country. We investigate the causes for this different approach, and stakeholder interests and interactions that influenced EPR design and implementation, in Quebec. We also discuss how various actors have been affected by, and have responded to, Quebec’s EPR program, and provide an update on how it has fared since coming into force in 2011. We conclude with some questions for further research. Quebec’s regulation demonstrates a greater demand for and supply of support for maintaining local employment through refurbishing and reuse, and reducing the environmental impacts of products through modulated fees, both due to the regulator’s ideology and interest, and vocal stakeholders on the demand side. The Quebec case shows that jurisdictions in which local firms and employment are least affected by regulation may be the most likely to experiment with novel policy instruments. At the same time, the fact that many provisions in the regulation are facing hurdles, five years after coming into force, demonstrates the hard realities of policy making and implementation, beyond the mere passing of legislation.