Alberta Recycling Management Authority Announces Dr. Gabrielle Betts as Executive Director EPR
Edmonton, Alberta – The Alberta Recycling Management Authority (ARMA) is pleased to announce the next step in implementing Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) oversight in Alberta with the appointment of Dr. Gabrielle Betts as Executive Director of the program, starting June 15, 2023. Dr. Betts will use her business acumen, leadership skills and passion for sustainability to help shape Alberta’s EPR oversight program from the ground up.
Dr. Betts brings more than 15 years of public service experience to the role, having developed and led teams with diverse portfolios and expansive accountability within the Government of Alberta’s ministries of health, community services, education, and status of women. Most recently, Dr. Betts has led departments with the City of Edmonton’s Employee Services and City Operations departments.
“ARMA was proud to be selected as the oversight body for EPR in the province, and now with Dr. Betts in her role as Executive Director, we’re eager to continue making progress in implementation,” noted ARMA Board Chair Brad Pickering. “When we were seeking the person for this role, we wanted someone with experience in collaboration, innovative thinking, and leading start-up projects across multiple workstreams—we’ve found all those attributes in Dr. Betts.”
Alberta’s Extended Producer Responsibility Regulation came into force on November 30, 2022, and shifts the physical and financial burden of collecting, sorting, processing, and recycling waste to the producer and away from local governments and taxpayers. Fully implemented by 2025, this new EPR framework will diversify our economy by encouraging companies to find innovative ways to recycle more materials and produce less packaging waste.
“We are thrilled to have Dr. Betts join the recycling industry in Alberta in what is sure to be an essential program for the future of our province,” said Ed Gugenheimer, CEO of ARMA. “The EPR program will be critical to our economy and setting up our province for a sustainable future, and we are confident that having Dr. Betts at the helm ensures we are set up for success.”
