The Updated Bottle Bill

MASSPIRG offers the following --

I'd like you to mark a date on your calendar right now.

On Wednesday October 7, the Updated Bottle Bill gets its first hearing this legislative session. This is a very important event, as the first hearing a bill gets really sets the tone: is it a bill people care about? Is the hearing room crowded? Are citizens contacting their legislator about the issue? A "yes" to those questions gives your bill a better shot.

The bottle bill is still the most successful recycling program in the state, with close to 70% of containers redeemed for recycling. But it's now 25 years old, and we need an updated program that reflects our current needs. When the Bottle Bill became law in 1983, most soft drinks on the shelves were some kind of soda -- cola and the like. But many of the soft drinks we now consume -- iced tea, water, and sports drinks -- are not covered by the Bottle Bill's nickel deposit system, and those containers are ending up in the trash. The update to the Bottle Bill currently pending in the Legislature would add all these "new age" drinks to the law.

A hearing on the bill is coming up on October 7. To ask your legislator to support HB3515, the Updated Bottle Bill, click here.

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.

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.

Rep. Alice Wolf and Sen. Cynthia Creem have filed legislation for the 2009-2010 legislative session to update our current Bottle Bill (HB 3515). This legislation would expand the recycling program to include the following beverages:

- Carbonated and noncarbonated 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

It would also increase the handling fee from 2.25 cents per container to 3 cents, making the system more practical for the redemption centers.

Please send a message to your legislators asking them to support the updated Bottle Bill:

https://www.masspirg.org/action/healthy-communities/email-leg-bottle-bill

Sincerely,

Janet Domenitz
MASSPIRG Executive Director
JanetD@masspirg.org
http://www.masspirg.org

FACT SHEET

Twelve thousand citizens ask DEP Commissioner Burt to Reduce/Reuse/Recycle