Opinion

What's Bugging Andy?: The Bottle Bill

Iowa's bottle is on Governor Culver's table right now, and it's about time. Culver and environmental groups want to expand it, while the grocers and beverage distributors want it dumped altogether. Both sides make good points in their arguments, and when that happens, it usually means that we'll never get anywhere. And we must get somewhere with this lousy system!

Is there anyone who doesn't just hate "bottle and can day" at their house? You've procrastinated like a college student with a term paper, but you've reached the point where you can no longer get the car in the garage, and that's it: you've got to take them back!

Aside from cleaning the gutters, or, pulling "poo patrol" in the backyard, is there a worse chore to get stuck with? The stuff is dirty and smelly-- some are broken and scattered-- and they've all got to go back.

Of course, the fun is just beginning. You next have to join the most random cross section of society this side of the State Fair, in the bottle and can room at your local grocery store. Those places can make the bus station look like the dining room at Wakonda!

You feed in the cans and bottles, and everything is going alright, until you invariably hit one of two roadblocks. The first is that the machine gets full, and thus you've got to move on to another while the kid with the short straw comes in and empties the thing. That can take a while, and who wants to spend any more time that disgusting room?

The other thing that happens is the machine, or the person inside at the counter, tells you that the store "doesn't accept this brand." More and more stores are refusing to accept brands that the location doesn't carry. You're supposed to either remember where you bought it, and take it there, or remember to do all of your beverage shopping at that store.

Whether the problem is with the stores or the distributors, gimmee a break. This is something which should not be allowed, regardless of whether Culver's new proposal passes or fails. All bottles and cans with "Iowa refund" labels should be accepted at all redemption centers.

The unacceptable containers usually end up right in the dumpster, and that defeats the entire purpose. It's hard to blame the stores for being less than chipper about welcoming in thousands of smelly cans and bottles. They all admit they support recycling and should be responsible for its proliferation. But they'd like to step away from the garbage business, which is what this is.

All curbside recycling should be expanded-- no sorting, no ticky-tack rules. And bins should be placed in office buildings, sports venues and shopping areas. Make it easy.

Look, this society built a machine that can tell me whether a can of Diet Coke was purchased at one store, or another. Don't tell me we're not bright enough to come up with a better system than this.

This plan stinks.

I'm Andy Fales, and that's what's bugging me.

Video located at
http://www.whotv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7832460