August 4, 2026 – The Used Oil Management Association of Canada (UOMA) has released its national recovery data for the 2025* calendar year, reporting an 84.2% recovery rate for used oil available for collection.
This represents a 0.6% increase over the 2024 recovery rate of 83.6%, or approximately nine million additional litres recovered, and reflects an upward trend in materials recovered across participating provinces and territories.
UOMA consists of eleven industry-led provincial and territorial stewardship programs spanning British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario (Automotive Materials Stewardship), Québec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Yukon. The total volume of used oil recovered nationally within the reporting framework for 2025 reached 267.8 million litres (excluding Ontario and Yukon).
“Achieving an 84.2% recovery rate highlights the stability and long-term viability of Canada’s Extended Producer Responsibility programs,” says David Fifield, chair of the National Used Oil Material and Antifreeze Advisory Council (NUOMAAC). “The incremental growth represents more than nine million litres of used oil recovered over the previous year, to a total of 267.8 million litres recovered. This demonstrates that our provincial collection and processing systems are performing reliably, ensuring these materials are consistently diverted and kept out of waste streams.”
Program Operations and Governance
Under provincial regulations in Canada, producers of oil and glycol products are legally mandated to manage the materials they introduce to the marketplace when they reach end-of-life. The regional Used Oil Management Associations administer these compliance programs on behalf of their respective industry members.
The programs maintain an accessible network of:
- Public return collection points
- Registered commercial collectors
- Authorized material processors
This logistical network ensures that automotive products are systematically diverted from waste streams. Collected used oil is transferred to authorized facilities for reuse or re-refining. The re-refining process transforms used oil back into lubricating oil bases, reducing total reliance on the extraction of non-renewable virgin resources.
To access provincial program details, accepted products, or to locate a registered public drop-off site or commercial collector, visit usedoilrecycling.com.
* Alberta’s data represents the fiscal period from April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025.
About the Used Oil Management Association of Canada
Inter-provincial cooperation of the provincial Used Oil Management Associations (UOMA) is formalized through the National Used Oil Material and Antifreeze Advisory Council (NUOMAAC), which coordinates the Canadian used oil and antifreeze materials recycling effort and encourages national standards. The waste streams include used oil, used oil filters, used antifreeze, used plastic oil/antifreeze/DEF containers and pails, and aerosol cans. For more information, visit https://usedoilrecycling.com.
