BaltimOregon to Maine

Recycling bin, trashcan, yard waste bin at Corvallis curbside (from left to right).

Returning bottles for 5-cents a pop.

They do everything a little differently out here in Orygun. Take the trashcans, for example. Our recycling bin is a big roll-can while a smaller vessel accommodates our trash, encouraging us to throw out less. And glass doesn’t even go into regular recycling, because Oregon gives you five cents per bottle you return to the grocery store. To reduce waste and incentivize recycling, Oregon was the first state to pass a bottle bill in 1971. But the bottles often aren’t returned to the stores of purchase, which means the beer and beverage distributors profit. That five cent deposit hasn’t kept up with inflation. It just doesn’t give people the same push to return the bottle it used to.

But a more substantial 50-cent deposit seems reasonable (of course consumers have to pay that on the front end). At the University of Oregon, I recently bought a Eugene-made kombucha drink you paid a 50-cent deposit on. It made returning the bottle that much more of a priority.

Do you think the bottle bill works? What deposit amount do you think is appropriate?

They do everything a little differently out here in Orygun.

Link to this article;

http://wweek.com/editorial/3305/8332/