Editorial

Bravo, N.Y.! And Vermont?

How could this have happened? How did New York of all states edge ahead of Vermont in a progressive recycling issue like bottle deposit legislation?

This week, New York Governor David Paterson signed a "bigger, better" bottle deposit bill that updated the original for the first time since the 1980s. The major change, as far as the environment is concerned, is that deposits will now be collected on bottles containing noncarbonated beverages and water, rather than just beer, soda and similar carbonated beverages.

Since the first bottle bills were enacted — Vermont's was the second, passed a year after Oregon's in 1972 — updated versions have been exceedingly difficult to enact because of heavily financed campaigns by bottlers like Coca-Cola and Pepsi and large supermarket chains that routinely distort the potential impacts.

In truth, the major impact of expanded bottle bills is always less trash packed into expensive-to-operate landfills or going to incinerators, which send harmful smoke into our air.

The New York bill targets noncarbonated beverage containers because of the huge growth in water, tea, juice, sports drinks and other noncarbonated beverages since the first bottle bill was were enacted. Bottled water is the largest component, making up about 70 percent of noncarbonated drink sales.

Oregon and Connecticut also have updated their laws to include those containers.

Vermont lawmakers have taken up an expanded bottle bill several times in recent years, but nothing has made it into law. In addition to expanding deposits to noncarbonated drink containers, a hike in the deposit itself is long overdue — 5 cents during the 1970s or '80s should be 10 or 15 cents today if we also want to encourage collection of discarded containers.

With the Democrats and Progressives firmly in control of the Legislature, now may be the time to pass this much-needed reform. At least we should be thinking — how did New York get ahead of us on this?

http://www.benningtonbanner.com/opinion/ci_12122022