Ontario taxpayers will be on the hook for millions of dollars for shutting down the eco fee program that was introduced last July and then quickly cancelled.
The province expected it would cost $8 million a year to keep six key items targeted by the eco fees -- such as fire extinguishers and compact fluorescent light bulbs -- out of landfills.
Stewardship Ontario, the agency that runs the blue box program and was responsible for the eco fees, is also looking to recover stranded costs it estimates at $10 million.
Environment Minister John Wilkinson says his auditors feel that figure is "wildly inflated," and says taxpayers will not be paying that much.
The opposition parties say the extra tab for shutting down the failed eco fee program shows how poorly designed it was in the first place.
The New Democrats say producers of the products should be designing them with less packaging and fewer toxins, and should also pay for their disposal instead of sticking taxpayers with the tab.
