Politics & Government
Proposed Legislation Would Create Bottle Deposit System
Studies have shown that bottle deposits lead to reductions in beverage container litter ranging from 69 percent to 84 percent, and reductions in total litter ranging from 30 percent to 65 percent.
Over the years, I have had the honor to join hundreds of dedicated volunteers as part of various clean-up and stream/river restoration efforts in our district. These include clean-ups in the mud flats and shorelines of Back River as well as the cleaning efforts of Bread and Cheese Creek.
As a result, hundreds of bags of debris and scores of tires have been removed from our local waterways, improving the health of our bay, increasing the property values of the area, and making our local environment more enjoyable.
Due to these efforts, we have made tremendous progress in keeping our local waters clean. We are especially proud of the new trash boom that is now installed in Back River.
Still, the trash boom has done little to address the underlying issues leading to the trash—and in particular the bottles and cans—being deposited in our local waters. Moreover, it has done nothing to help keep smaller tributaries such as Bread and Cheese Creek free from new debris. We must be innovative in our thinking about ways in which we can prevent these bottles and cans from making it into our waterways in the first place.
In Annapolis, I have proposed legislation that would require we explore another proposal that may prove beneficial not only to keeping Back River clean, but also in helping our streets to see less trash: a bottle deposit system. Creating a study would allow us to identify issues related to installing such a system in Maryland, allowing us to avoid placing undue burdens on businesses while moving forward toward this important effort.
Bottle deposits are nothing new—they currently exist in 11 states. In its simplest form, residents pay a nominal deposit for each bottle or can purchased. Upon using the product, consumers would be able to return it to a store or processing center for a full return of their original deposit.
A bottle deposit system should be seen as a win-win: it costs responsible citizens whom recycle their bottles and cans nothing (they get their deposits back) and the environment benefits from less trash in our waterways. The environment also benefits through increased recycling rates, as states with bottle bills typically have dramatically higher rates of recycling than the national average.
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Finally, the environment wins, as any unreturned bottles would generate revenue that could be used to help protect (such as with trash collectors) and restore (such as plating bay grasses) Back River and the Chesapeake Bay.
Moreover, because the bottles would be of value, it is likely that individuals and groups would go out to help collect what is merely “trash” today off our streets. Government-funded studies have shown that bottle deposits lead to reductions in beverage container litter ranging from 69 percent to 84 percent, and reductions in total litter ranging from 30 percent to 65 percent.
Imagine 84 percent less bottles and 65 percent less trash in our local waters and on our streets!
If we are serious about preserving and protecting our Bay and environment and cleaning up our streets, moving forward toward a bottle deposit system is absolutely the right thing to do.