Industry manages to cut Ontario blue box levy increase for magazines by two-thirds

Magazines Canada has succeeded in convincing Stewardship Ontario to moderate its blue box levy for 2013. Where tonnage fees for the printed paper category were originally set to go up almost 56% to $0.0849/kg in the coming year, a more modest -- but still bracing -- increase of 18.7% to $0.0647/kg has been approved.

Stewardship Ontario publicly agreed that the proposed 2013 magazine rate was unfair and, as a result, worked within the Steward organization to find a solution [Magazines Canada said in a bulletin to members]. The rate situation is made even more egregious because Canadian publishers are paying for foreign publisher recycling. Foreign magazines contribute nothing to the financial operation of the Blue Box system despite contributing an estimated 30%+ of total magazine tonnage. It is called "free riding" and it is simply wrong. In addition to the fee reduction, Stewardship Ontario will undertake more studies on long-term fee impacts and free riders for use in 2014 rate discussions.