Ottawa wants to find how much plastic producers are making, and where it ends up

Plastic producers will be required to detail the quantity and type of plastic they put into the Canadian market under new rules announced Monday.

The categories covered by the federal government's new registry are wide-ranging, including packaging for single-use and disposable products, construction, electronics and transportation.

Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said the registry «will require plastic producers to take more responsibility for the plastic they put on the market.»

«Every year from now on, they must declare the quantity and types of plastic they supply, how these plastics move through the economy, and how they are managed at the end of their life,» he said at a news conference.

The announcement comes on the eve of an international summit in Ottawa. Negotiators from 176 countries will gather in downtown Ottawa this week for the fourth round of talks to create a global treaty to eliminate plastic waste in less than 20 years.

The registry is part of the federal government's overall effort to reduce plastic waste in Canada. Canadians throw away more than four million tonnes of plastic waste every year, according to the federal government. Only nine per cent is recycled, with the bulk ending up in landfills.

One of the federal government's key efforts to address the problem was dealt a blow in November when a judge struck down a key policy upholding a ban on single-use plastics.

Ottawa has announced it's appealing that decision.

When it comes to the new registry, provinces and territories have similar programs in place but data collection is inconsistent across jurisdictions, according to a analysis published last year byEnvironment Canada.

The document said a federal registry would «standardize the data» and