Update The Bottle Bill

What's New

Since 1990, more than 15 billion containers have been redeemed under the Massachusetts bottle bill, contributing to a healthier environment, cleaner and safer communities, and a stronger economy. But as consumers’ tastes change, the bottle bill must be updated to keep up with our times. Representatives Douglas Petersen and Alice Wolf have filed legislation for the 2007-2008 legislative session to update our current Bottle Bill (An Act to Improve Recycling Rates in the Commonwealth—HB 821).

This new bill addresses not only the system’s current needs, but also allows a semiannual review.

This legislation would:

• Expand the recycling program to include the following beverages:

- Carbonated and non-carbonated water, including flavored and non-flavored filtered water, mineral water and purified waters;
- Carbonated and noncarbonated fruit juices and drinks;
- Carbonated and noncarbonated vegetable juices and drinks;
- Ready-to-drink coffee and tea beverages;
- Sports drinks

• Increase the redemption from 5 cents to 10 cents.

• Increase the handling fee from 2.25 cents per container to 3 cents. Handling costs are not paid by the state; they come from the bottlers.

How You Can Help

Urge your state representative to bring the state’s most successful recycling program into the 21st century by passing the bottle bill update.

Brief Summary

Benefits of the updated bottle bill

The beverage market has changed dramatically since the passage of the original Bottle Bill in 1982. In fact, 20 billion “new-age” beverages are consumed annually in the US, and this number is only expected to increase. These beverage containers, mainly bottled waters, juices, iced teas, and sports drinks, are not yet covered under the current Bottle Bill. As consumers purchase more of these beverages, an increasing number of containers are finding their way to landfills—an estimated 69,000 tons nationwide.

Increased recycling: The more trash we burn and bury in the Commonwealth, the more problems we generate for public health and the environment. Fourteen towns have lost drinking water from contamination suspected from leaking landfills. Solid waste incinerators are one of the chief sources of mercury emitted into the air. The Updated Bottle Bill would more than double the recycling rate for non-redeemable containers and would give consumers more of an incentive to recycle those containers. The greatest impact of the Updated Bottle Bill on recycling has been and will continue to be on beverages consumed away from home, where recycling opportunities are often limited.

Approximately 50% of all single-serve beverages are consumed on the go. Roughly 40% of redeemable beverages are consumed on the go and last year were recycled at the rate of 68%. By comparison, an estimated 39% of non-redeemable containers are recycled through other recycling options.

Once the Bottle Bill is updated, state officials predict that redemption rates will be higher than the current 69% redemption rate of carbonated beverages sold in the Commonwealth. Only 20% of the containers sold in Massachusetts end up in a landfill or incinerator, or as litter. In contrast, states without deposit systems usually recycle about 22% of the containers sold.

Decreased litter: States with bottle bills have experienced a 70-85% reduction in litter and a 30-35% reduction in overall litter after the bottle bill was implemented. Non-redeemable containers are 9 times more likely to wind up as litter than deposit containers.

Taxpayer savings: Trash disposal results in great costs for Massachusetts’ cities and towns. Updating the Bottle Bill would divert additional containers from the waste stream, which would both remove material that is not profitable for municipalities to recycle and would decrease the fees that municipalities pay to burn or bury their trash.

Job creation and economic activity: Gains in employment have been shown in nearly every state with deposit systems. In Michigan an additional 4,684 jobs were added to the economy. New York found that 3,800 new jobs were created in that state. Massachusetts and Vermont gained 1,800 and 350 jobs respectively.

Improved health and safety: Removing more bottles will reduce the amount of broken glass in our playgrounds and parks, resulting in fewer incidents of cuts and lacerations among children. Less litter and broken glass along our streets and highways will also mean less property damage to farm equipment, livestock, and vehicles.

Increased revenue: Unclaimed deposits have traditionally provided critical funding for many state recycling and environmental programs. The bottle bill currently brings the state approximately $33 million in annual revenue from unclaimed deposits. An updated Bottle Bill would contribute an additional revenue to state coffers.

How the bottle bill works

When a retailer buys beverages from a distributor, a five cent deposit is paid to the distributor for each can or bottle purchased. When buying a beverage, the consumer pays the deposit to the retailer. The five cent deposit is refunded when the consumer returns the empty beverage container to the retail store, to a redemption center, or to a reverse vending machine. The retailer recovers the deposit from the distributor, plus an additional handling fee of $0.0225 for handling the empty bottles and cans

Not all consumers redeem their containers for the deposit.  In Massachusetts, distributors and bottlers are required to turn over unclaimed deposits to the state.