(Opinion)

Cheers and Jeers

CHEERS to the New York State Legislature and the governor for enacting the expanded Bottle Law last Oct. 31, which now enables plastic water bottles to be recycled rather than thrown into the ground with trash. The Container Recycling Institute estimates that, of 3.2 billion bottles of water sold in New York each year, 2 billion will be recycled, avoiding greenhouse-gas emissions equivalent to 28,075 cars and keeping almost 82,000 tons of plastic out of landfills. The energy saved would power 43,600 homes for a year, the institute says. The bottlers and distributors opposed the law, but, in this case, right prevailed. Imagine all of that plastic going back into the ground instead of being reused. It seemed like a robust controversy a year ago, but now it seems so beneficial to the environment that we wonder how resistance ever gained footing.

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http://pressrepublican.com/0200_opinion/x91129740/Cheers-and-Jeers-Aug-2-2010