Waste in Ontario
Image source: Government of Canada, 2017
Overview of waste in Ontario
Residential vs. Non-Residential waste in Ontario, 2020
In 2020, 3,814,211 tonnes of waste (37.0%) was generated by residential sources in Ontario, while 6,486,350 tonnes of waste (63.0%) was generated by non-residential sources. In total, 10,300,560 tonnes of municipal solid waste was generated in Ontario in 2020 (Statistics Canada, 2024).
Waste production in Ontario, 2012-2022
In Ontario, there was a general decrease of non-residential waste by 2.5 % between 5,820,338 tonnes in 2012 and 5,674,507 tonnes in 2014. Then, the trend changed, and the waste increased by 23.6 % to 7,016,370 tonnes by 2022.
For residential waste in Ontario, there has been a general increase of 17.5 % from 3,388,501 tonnes in 2012 to 3,980,665 tonnes in 2018. Between 2018 and 2022 there was however a decline of 6.5 % to 3,722,372 tonnes (Statistics Canada, 2024).
Waste per capita in Ontario, 2012-2022
With a population of 14,757,582 the waste per capita of residential waste in Ontario was 0.25 tonnes in 2022. The waste per capita generally increased by 17.4 % from 0.23 in 2012 to 0.27 in 2018. Then, it generally decreased by 7.4 % to 0.25 in 2022.
For non-residential waste, the waste per capita in Ontario was 0.48 tonnes. It decreased by 2.6 % from 0.39 in 2012 to 0.38 in 2014. Since then, the waste per capita has generally increased by 26.3 % to 0.48 in 2022 (Statistics Canada, 2024).
Composition of residential waste in Ontario, 2022
For residential waste in Ontario, 1,023,154 tonnes were organic waste (33.9%), 541,769 tonnes were food waste (17.9%), 572,437 tonnes were paper fibers (19.0%), 469,543 tonnes were yard waste (15.5%), 107,125 tonnes were construction waste (3.5%), and 306,737 tonnes were other forms of waste (10.2%) (Statistics Canada, 2024).
Composition of non-residential waste in Ontario, 2022
For non-residential waste in Ontario, 821,818 tonnes were paper fibers (57.7%), 167,327 tonnes were organic waste (11.7%), 86,337 tonnes were construction waste (6.1%), 84,195 tonnes were food waste (5.9%), 69,720 tonnes were ferrous metals (4.9%), 58,285 tonnes were yard waste (4.1%), 48,691 tonnes were glass waste (3.4%), and 88,080 tonnes were other forms of waste (6.2%) (Statistics Canada, 2024).
Solid waste assets in Ontario, 2022
In Ontario, there are in total 1,516 solid waste assets. Specifically, there are 716 closed sites (inactive engineered landfills and dumps) (47.2%), 322 transfer station assets (21.2%), 193 active dump sites (12.7%), 166 active engineered landfills (10.9%), 64 composting facilities (4.2%), and 55 other solid waste assets (3.6%) (Statistics Canada, 2022).
References
Government of Canada. (2024). Solid waste diversion and disposal. Retrieved June 16, 2024, from https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/environmental-indicators/solid-waste-diversion-disposal.html
Statistics Canada. (2024). Table 38-10-0138-01 Waste materials diverted, by type and by source DOI: https://doi.org/10.25318/3810013801-eng
Statistics Canada. (2024). Table 17-10-0009-01 Population estimates, quarterly. DOI:https://doi.org/10.25318/1710000901-eng
Statistics Canada. (2024). Table 38-10-0032-01 Disposal of waste, by source DOI: https://doi.org/10.25318/3810003201-eng
Statistics Canada. (2022). Table 34-10-0236-01 Inventory of publicly owned solid waste assets, Infrastructure Canada DOI: https://doi.org/10.25318/3410023601-eng
Government of Canada. (2017). Provincial and territorial symbols. Retrieved August 15, 2024, from https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/provincial-territorial-symbols-canada.html
Notes
”Misc.” data refers to miscellaneous data, and indicates any form of waste adding up to less than 3.0% individually, added together in one category for better overview.