Ontario's tire recycling rules are changing. Here's what it means for your business.

Ontario has finalized significant changes to its tire recycling rules following consultations earlier this year. The government’s decision was released September 21, with key updates including:

  • Increasing the tire management target from 65% to 80% for 2026 and onwards
  • Expanding the required collection network from approximately 4,300 to 6,500 sites beginning in 2027
  • Preserving flexibility in how tires are managed, including continued recognition of retreading and no new requirement to process tires in Ontario

 

Do you need to do anything today?
No. If ReclayPRO manages your tire obligations, we’re managing these changes for you and are expecting to meet the new 80% target.

Should you expect an immediate change in cost?
No. A higher target means more tires will need to be managed across Ontario, and that could put pressure on system costs over time. But uncertainty in the market doesn’t mean our clients should face reactive or retroactive cost adjustments. ReclayPRO has never been found non-compliant and places a premium on cost certainty.

There is also some good news in the final regulation. Ontario did not proceed with several proposals that could have added cost and complexity to the system. And several elements of the final approach align with recommendations ReclayPRO made during the consultation including maintaining processing flexibility, preserving retreading as an eligible management option and enabling greater cooperation and performance trading among PROs.

 

What it means for your business

Retailers and collection sites: No new action today. Ontario ultimately rejected the proposed universal call-in system and prescribed pickup timelines. Instead, it will require the formal collection network to grow by approximately 2,200 sites in 2027.


Producers: the management requirement is increasing from 65% to 80% for 2026. If ReclayPRO manages your obligations, we’re managing that transition. Our focus is maintaining compliance, securing the additional eligible management required and giving you as much cost certainty as possible.


Large industrial and commercial tire producers: The 80% target is only part of the picture. Ontario has preserved retreading as an eligible management option and decided against restricting processing to Ontario. Meanwhile, a federal trade investigation involving certain Chinese new and retreaded truck and bus tires could eventually affect commercial tire and retreading economics. We are watching these developments together because they could influence capacity, costs and tire flows across the Canadian market. A favourable finding could ultimately result in anti-dumping or countervailing duties on affected Chinese imports, potentially improving the position of Canadian-manufactured and retreaded tires.

Key dates:

October 30: Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) preliminary injury determination
November 16: CITT publishes its reasons
November 30: If the case continues, Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) preliminary dumping/subsidy determinations; provisional duties could begin at this stage
December 15: CBSA publishes its reasons
March 2027: CBSA final dumping/subsidy determinations, publishes its reasons for those final determinations

READ ON to understand what changed, what ReclayPRO advocated for and where the market could go next:

Importantly, the final regulation differs meaningfully from what the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) originally put forward for consultation. The April proposal focused heavily on prescribing how tires should move through the system. Ontario considered universal collection for sites accumulating at least 50 tires, mandatory collection timelines, allocation of unserved sites among PROs and a requirement to manage collected tires within three months. The consultation also explored ways of directing more material to Ontario processors, including Ontario-processing requirements and whether retreading should continue to count toward management targets. Following consultation, Ontario chose a different approach, which included:

Following consultation, Ontario chose a different approach, and appears to be setting a substantially higher performance bar while preserving more flexibility in how the industry reaches it by:

Dropping several prescriptive requirements and instead significantly
Increasing the overall performance expected from the system.
Increasing the management target to 80% and requiring approximately 2,200 additional collection sites—neither of which was part of the original proposed amendments. Both emerged following consultation.

Where ReclayPRO’s recommendations landed

ReclayPRO participated actively in the consultation, and several elements of the final framework align with positions we advanced.

Processing flexibility

ReclayPRO’s position
Ontario considered measures that would favour or require Ontario-based processing. ReclayPRO cautioned that geographic restrictions could reduce competition, constrain capacity and increase transportation and processing costs.
 

Final outcome
Retained

Ontario did not proceed with Ontario-processing restrictions at this time.

Retreading

ReclayPRO’s position
Ontario asked whether retreading should stop counting toward management targets as a means of directing more tires into recycling. ReclayPRO strongly opposed that approach.
 

Final outcome
Retained

Ontario did not proceed with Ontario-processing restrictions at this time.

PRO cooperation and performance trading

ReclayPRO’s position
ReclayPRO advocated for greater industry coordination (e.g. clearinghouse or similar) rather than a regulator-directed allocation system, including an industry-led clearinghouse model.
 

Final outcome
 Significant alignment

The final framework allows shared collection sites and trading of excess management performance among PROs.

Universal call-in collection

ReclayPRO’s position
ReclayPRO supported reliable service for legitimate collection sites but opposed a complex system under which RPRA could allocate unserved sites among PROs.
 

Final outcome
Proposal dropped

Ontario did not proceed with the universal call-in model or prescribed pickup timelines.

Three-month management deadline

ReclayPRO’s position
ReclayPRO did not opose the proposed requirement to move collected tires to eligible management within three months.
 

Final outcome

Not adopted  

Ontario ultimately did not proceed with the requirement.

Collection network size

ReclayPRO’s position
ReclayPRO argued that Ontario should focus first on reliable service to existing collection sites rather than simply increasing their number. Ontario ultimately chose to expand the required network from approximately 4,300 to 6,500 sites. Additionally, the 80% management target emerged following consultation but was not part of the original proposal at all.
 

Final outcome

Different approach

Ontario will expand the required network from approximately 4,300 to 6,500 sites.

Next steps

Ultimately, the model now requires producers to achieve a 2026 management target while preparing for a much larger collection network in 2027.

  • For ReclayPRO clients, there is no immediate action required. We are incorporating the new requirements into our planning now.
  • Over the coming months, our focus will be on securing the management performance required under the new 80% target; preparing for the expanded 2027 collection network; monitoring collection, processing and retreading capacity and costs; assessing opportunities under the new performance-trading framework; and following the federal truck and bus tire trade case.

Our objective remains the same: keep our clients compliant, plan ahead rather than react, and provide the greatest possible cost certainty in a changing market.

Contact Us

Have questions about tire compliance requirements or looking to learn how ReclayPRO can support your organization? 

Our team is here to help you understand your obligations and next steps.

Address
130 King Street West, Suite 1800
Toronto, ON
M5X 2A2

Contact
info@reclaypro.com

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