March 9, 2010
Bottle bill supporters say trash turns treasure when garbage gets a price tag
To say Melvin Bryan's wife likes bottled water would be an understatement, and about every week, her taste becomes his chore.
"It's a good idea to recycle, because this stuff would be thrown in a trash dumpster," Bryan said while holding a bag of about 150 water bottles at a Knoxville recycling center.
Bryan's already committed to recycling.
"These landfills are filling up. Some day they're going to run out of landfills," Bryan said.
Still, he admits, making a little money to do it wouldn't hurt.
"I think it would be fantastic to get paid for recycling," Bryan said.
Tuesday, state lawmakers discussed whether to start paying people to recycle some of their trash.
The proposal is informally called the "Bottle Bill."
Currently, companies who package their products in most plastic, glass and metal containers pay a litter tax.
The bill would replace that tax with a 5 cent deposit.
The deposit is returned down the line as each party involved passes the product forward.
The manufacturer gets the 5 cents back when the product is sold to stores. The stores get the 5 cents back when the product is sold to consumers.
The nickel then comes back to the consumer if he or she decides to recycle it at a certified redemption center.
"The user, the processor, all get their money back in this sequential system," said Scenic Tennessee Board Member Gene Burr.
The goal is to raise recycling rates in counties like Knox County, where residents recycle about 10% of all the trash accumulated.
However, opponents of the bill argue it would drive up prices and send consumers to other states that don't have the program.
Supporters counter that the deposit simply replaces an existing tax, and therefore wouldn't drive up prices.
Burr believes most people want to recycle.
"I just don't think they have the incentive to," Burr said. "Money apparently affects human behavior and that nickel deposit is a pretty significant incentive. I think this is our opportunity to do something about the litter."
http://www.wbir.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=115333&provider=gnews
