As the new home of MASSPIRG's environmental work, Environment Massachusetts can be contacted regarding this news release.
BOSTON—Hours
before the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy
held a public hearing on the Bottle Bill, , MASSPIRG, and Sierra Club ,
and several lawmakers urged support for an update of the Massachusetts
Bottle Bill. The update will add non-carbonated beverages to the
deposit system.
Legislation
sponsored by Representative Doug Petersen (D-Marblehead) and Senator
Andrea F. Nuciforo, Jr. (D-Pittsfield) would update the 20 year-old law
by including beverages which have come on to the market since the
1980’s, as well as wine and liquor bottles. The update would also raise
over $16 million dollars in additional state revenue from projected
unclaimed deposits.
The
Commonwealth’s Bottle Bill, which boasts a 70% recycling rate, has done
more to control litter and spur recycling in the commonwealth than any
other state or local program. Since its inception in 1983, over 30
billion containers bearing a 5-cent deposit have been returned and
recycled through the bottle bill.
“The
fact that two decades after its passage, the bottle bill is still the
most effective tool in decreasing litter and increasing recycling,
speaks to the success of the deposit system, but we need to modernize
the law to keep pace with the times” said House sponsor Representative
Doug Petersen of Marblehead.
In
the past two decades, the beverage market has changed along with
consumer preferences. Last year, approximately 850 million “new age”
beverages– iced tea, bottled water, sports drinks and juices – were
consumed in Massachusetts. Excluded from the bottle bill, these
unredeemable containers are left to litter the streets and crowd
landfills and incinerators.
“Updating
the bottle bill to include containers, non-existent in 1983 but popular
today, is commonsense,” said Jen Baker, MASSPIRG’s Environmental
Associate. “I am hopeful that Chairman Dempsey and Chairman Morrissey
will seize this opportunity to support this long overdue update and
clean up the commonwealth’s communities.”
"Right
now, taxpayers are footing the bill to deal with these non-carbonated
containers- whether through curbside collection or litter clean-up,"
said Senator Andrea F. Nuciforo, Jr. "Including them in the
Commonwealth's bottle bill makes good fiscal and environmental sense."
While
most cities and towns have curbside recycling, the bottle bill is
significantly more effective in achieving recycling results. Typically,
curbside recycling programs capture about 20-25% of beverage
containers, with the rest becoming litter or landfill. In contrast,
about 70% of containers covered by the Bottle Bill are redeemed and
recycled.
"Updating
the bottle bill and boosting recycling rates means fewer containers
will be land-filled, incinerated or littered in our streets and parks,
more natural resources will be conserved, energy will be saved and
greenhouse gases reduced. The bottle bill already has diverted about 2
million tons of trash from the waste stream over the past 20 years,"
said James McCaffrey, the director of the Sierra Club of Massachusetts.
Unclaimed
deposits provide critical funding for many state programs. There is
currently over $34 million dollars in annual revenue from unclaimed
deposits. Under the update, an additional $16 million would be added.
Last
year, a similar measure drew widespread public support. Over 40
environmental groups, recycling companies and redemption centers
endorsed the update.
“It
is hard to get more win-win than this. An updated bottle bill will
increase recycling, get rid of more container litter and bring much
needed revenue to the state,” said Baker.
If
the update bill is approved by the legislature and signed by the
governor, Massachusetts would become the fourth state with an expanded
bottle bill. Maine, California, and Hawaii already require deposits on
non-carbonated beverages.
