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After months of controversy over who gets to recycle Saskatchewan tires, the program operator confirmed it has been shipping some tires out of the province for processing over the past year.
More than a year ago, California-headquartered company Crumb Rubber Manufacturers took over tire recycling after winning the recycling contract for southern Saskatchewan.
Since then, Stevyn Arnt, CEO of Tire Stewardship of Saskatchewan (TSS), said the organization has moved “minimal quantities of whole tires” out of the province for processing. They’re being sent to Crumb’s processing facility north of Calgary.
Arnt, who would only answer questions through email, wrote that tires are being moved while TSS works with Crumb to bring its Saskatchewan facility online and get it to full operating capacity.
Crumb Rubber Manufacturers has been working at a facility near Moose Jaw, which Arnt said was designed to process less than half of the tire volume it’s currently dealing with.
In May of this year, it was announced Crumb had also won the recycling contract for northern Saskatchewan. Arnt wrote that Tire Stewardship of Saskatchewan has worked with Crumb to deal with the extra volume of tires until its northern processing facility – expected to be built in the Saskatoon area – comes online.
Arnt couldn’t say exactly when the northern facility would be online, but said it could be up and running by the end of 2024 or early 2025. Once it’s open, Arnt said more equipment will be installed in Moose Jaw, rubber manufacturing will ramp up, and he predicted the disruptions will stop.
“In the meantime, we are working hard to keep Saskatchewan scrap tires picked up, delivered and processed,” Arnt said.
While TSS has been working with Crumb, Arnt pointed out they’ve been dealing with seasonal volume surges and unplanned breakdowns.
He couldn’t say what the volume of scrap tire has been in the past year. According to the TSS annual report from 2022, the tires collected in that year added up to 25,461,211 kilograms.
Arnt didn’t explain why Crumb Rubber Manufacturers was awarded the northern recycling contract when it was already struggling to deal with tire volumes.
For years, Shercom was contracted to deal with all the tire processing in Saskatchewan, and when TSS moved to split the province in two, Shercom spoke out. Shercom didn’t bid on either contract, arguing the process was rigged against it.
At the time, Tire Stewardship of Saskatchewan said part of the reason to split up the province was reducing program costs and environmental impacts. But now it is shipping some of the tires out of the province to be dealt with.
“TSS believes the extra freight costs incurred will be justified by the anticipated positive environmental impact of the program,” said Arnt.
Arnt wrote change can take time and cause short-term disruption, but it can still be worthwhile.
“In the end Saskatchewan will have one of the best tire recycling programs in Canada,” he said.
Recycling levy
In the meantime, the Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce has sent a letter to Saskatchewan Environment Minister Christine Tell, asking for the recycling levy charged on new tires to be cut in half until all scrap processing is done within the province.
“TSS has been operating outside its own regulations and legislated mandate by shipping tires outside the province for processing at the expense of Saskatoon jobs and livelihoods,” the chamber argued in the letter.
The chamber urged the ministry to act, as it oversees and reviews all aspects of the product stewardship program.
“Exporting tires for recycling – no matter the volume or frequency – exports the value and benefit of that levy to others outside our borders,” read the letter. “Further, our businesses and consumers should not be required to pay a surcharge on any government-sponsored product or service for which they are receiving no benefit.”
Tell was not available for an interview, but a statement from her office said the ministry doesn’t make operational decisions about the program, and that’s the role of Tire Stewardship of Saskatchewan.
Arnt said TSS won’t be looking to change the current recycling levy until the legacy tires on farms and in RMs are dealt with, which is expected to happen some time after the northern processing facility is up and running.
Tell’s office also said TSS is operating within its approved program because whole tires can be exported for processing “in extraordinary circumstances where there is no Saskatchewan processing capacity.”
The program with Tire Stewardship of Saskatchewan is set to be renewed later this year, and the two parties are working on the new terms.
‘Clearly the government lied,’ Sask. NDP says
Tell’s office didn’t respond to frustrations around the situation voiced by Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beck.
Beck accused Tell of lying in April this year when she told reporters “tires are not leaving the province.”
“As you see, clearly the government lied. They lied again,” said Beck.
“It’s gotten to the point that people are having a hard time believing what the Sask Party says.”
Beck accused the provincial government of selling out Saskatchewan jobs.
“It’s now clear that the Saskatchewan tire processing fees, paid by Saskatchewan people on their tires, are going towards creating jobs in Calgary, not in Saskatchewan,” said Beck.
Tell has said previously that Tire Stewardship of Saskatchewan is a separate entity and makes its own decisions, but Beck argued the minister doesn’t get to say she’s not responsible.
“Ultimately, she is the minister and the premier is the premier responsible for his ministers, and again, too often, we see a government that is not being truthful and tries to deflect when there’s accountability to be had,” said Beck.