Despite spending millions of dollars on recycling programs and public awareness campaigns, Ontarians are recycling less than residents of other provinces and sending more garbage than ever to the dump.

In response to a Statistics Canada report on the waste management industry, Doug Reycraft, president of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, said some of the cost of waste management should be paid by the companies that produce the packaging and paper products.

"Property tax payers should not subsidize companies that create garbage," Reycraft said.

FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE

"Making industry fiscally responsible for the printed paper and the packaging it produces will reduce waste, reduce municipal costs and better protect Ontario's environment."

In 2006, garbage disposal in Ontario rose to 10.4 million tonnes, an increase of 4%, while the waste diversion rate decreased by 1%, to 2.3 million tonnes.