Appeared as a Letter to the Editor, Boston Globe, October 28, 2024
Action on bottle bill is a glaring omission in proposed measure
The good news that our Legislature is finally getting its act together to pass a climate bill must be tempered by the glaring omission of a modernized bottle redemption policy (“Not too late, bill on climate emerges,” Page A1, Oct. 18). The bottle bill has not been updated since 1982. It should now include noncarbonated beverages, wine and spirits containers, and an increase in the deposit from 5 cents to 10 cents.
In 2021, only 38 percent of containers were redeemed for a deposit return in Massachusetts. According to the Container Recycling Institute, if the state increased the deposit to 10 cents, it could see container recycling rates of greater than 80 percent, based on data from Oregon and Michigan.
Why is this significant?
The energy used in producing new containers and the greenhouse gas emissions from such production are overwhelmingly greater than the energy expended in the creation of products from recycled materials. Recycling 1 ton of plastic, compared with producing 1 ton of virgin plastic, could reduce CO2 emissions by 1.1 tons to 3 tons, according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Recycled aluminum uses only about one-twentieth of the energy required to produce virgin aluminum. And the Glass Packaging Institute determined that for every 6 tons of recycled container glass used in glass or fiberglass production, a ton of CO2 is reduced.
Let our legislators get a deserved pat on the back for finally agreeing on a climate bill, and then let them get back to work in January to make it better by including a modernized bottle redemption provision in their agenda as we aspire to reach our 2050 climate goals.
Paul Goldberg
A Member of the Zero Waste Arlington Committee
