March 19, 2010
Grocers propose bottle redemption center for Wood Village
Grocers and bottlers want to build Oregon's first "redemption center" in Wood Village, barring bottle bill returns at three nearby grocery stores and bumping them to a new center on Northeast Halsey Street.
The Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative, backed by grocers and bottlers, has applied for Oregon Liquor Control Commission approval to build the center at 23345 N.E. Halsey St., shifting returns from three stores: the Fred Meyer at 22855 N.E. Park Lane, the Safeway at 2501 S.W. Cherry Park Road and the Walmart at 23500 N.E. Sandy Boulevard.
For years, Oregon's big grocers have wanted to offload the messy collection of bottles and cans returned under the state's storied bottle bill. Eventually, they'd like to have redemption centers throughout the state.
The industry says the redemption center would come with staff and a higher limit on daily returns per recycler, adding speed and convenience for the bottle bill's nickel-deposit returns.
Among other changes, the center would give recyclers the option to drop off bags of bottles and cans for counting by staff and get credit in an account, instead of stuffing them one by one into machines.
Last year, the cooperative filed an application with the OLCC for a redemption center in Gresham but withdrew the application before it came up for a hearing.
The Wood Village center would be open daily from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the summer and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. the rest of the year. The proposal includes a 24-hour drop box for account holders who get credit payment on a voucher. It will accept up to 200 containers per person each day.
The proposal is open for public comment through April 5. Send email to Lynne.Johnson@state.or.us.
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2010/03/grocers_propose_bottle_redempt.html
