April 8, 2010
Mattapoisett
Expanding the 1982 Bottle Bill
By Gretchen Grundstrom
MATTAPOISETT—
Selectmen next met with University of Massachusetts students Matt Burke and Denise DiPietro from the environmental advocacy group MassPirg regarding expanding the 1982 Bottle Bill five cent deposit on soda and beer cans and bottles to water and sports drinks.
With 133 Massachusetts towns supporting the bill, and California, Maine, New York, and Hawaii already implementing the extended legislation, students asked Selectmen for their support of Massachusetts House Bill 3515 that will help reduce the amount of plastic and glass ending up in landfills.
“I think it’s a good idea,” Selectman George Randall said. “It saves a lot and we need to recycle.”
But Selectmen Paul Silva was a bit more cautious.
“I’d like to know the other side of the argument before I support it,” he said.
“I believe in recycling. I do have a problem with taxing water.”
“It’s not really a tax,” DiPietro said and pointed to the likelihood of a container with a deposit on it being recycled.
“I support it wholeheartedly,” Mattapoisett Selectmen Chairman Jordan Collyer said.
http://www.wickedlocal.com/mattapoisett/news/x1336923529/Expanding-the-1982-Bottle-Bill
