April 8, 2008

Clarksville Online

Environmentally friendly bills stalled in Tennessee senate committees
By Beth Robinson

Bottle deposit bill

The other bill we were most interested in supporting, the bottle deposit bill, was put off for a week because there was no time to hear the case. Container deposit bills change behavior and are the single most effective tool yet devised to significantly and permanently reduce litter—more effective than curbside recycling, more effective than penalties, more effective than education programs, and certainly more effective than prisoner pickup programs.

Senate Government Operations — Wednesday at 2:00 pm
MEMBERS: Chair Harper (D), Vice Chair Marrero (D), Secretary O. Ford (D), Bunch (R), Crowe (R), J. Johnson (R), Stanley (R), Watson (R), Williams (I).

*SB 1408 Jackson: TN Deposit Beverage Container Act of 2007 (AKA the Bottle Bill). Requires deposit beverage distributors to pay a fee to the department a fee of one-half of one cent (increasing to three cents by July 2008) per deposit container and a separate deposit of 5 cents on each beverage in a deposit container manufactured in or imported to the state.

Recommended action: Support this bill, attend committee meeting.

SB 1408/HB 1829 creates the TN Beverage Container Act to increase recycling rates and reduce litter. This bill would place a refundable deposit on containers of beer, soda and other designated beverages. A large, nonpartisan coalition of organizations, including the Tennessee Federation of Garden Clubs, Cumberland Harpeth Chapter of the Audubon Society, Scenic Tennessee, TN Conservation Voters, Tennessee Scenic Rivers, Loudon County Commission, Maury County Commission, Maury County Farm Bureau, Lebanon Beautification Board, Davy Crockett Ruritan District, Trout Unlimited, Keep Bristol Beautiful, Kiwanis Club of Tellico Village, Recycle Rutherford, Boone Watershed Partnership, League of Women Voters of Tennessee and Tennessee Sierra Club support this legislation because:

  • A recent survey conducted by UT in which registered voters were asked if they would support a 5-cent refundable deposit on beverage containers as a way to reduce litter and increase recycling rates in Tennessee. An amazing 80.4 % of those polled said they would support such a bill–with almost half saying they would support it.
  • Improved recycling rates generate lower landfill costs. Many Tennessee counties currently pay in excess of $30/ton to landfill solid wastes.
  • In 2005, Tennessee was found to generate a total of almost 4 pounds of litter per person per year in Tennessee. In Maine, the state whose bottle bill most closely resembles the one we propose for Tennessee, the total litter generated per person was 4 ounces of litter per year.
  • TDOT is spending $5 – 6 million per year picking up trash along state roadways. Counties are spending up to $6.5 million per year on litter collection and cities are spending millions to pick up litter on their streets.

http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/2008/04/08/tn-senate-committees-green-bills-stalled/