British Columbia
September 14, 2011 The District of North Vancouver will ask the province to consider attaching a refundable deposit to milk containers. District council voted 5-2 in support of writing a letter to B.C.’s environment minister Terry Lake, asking the province to expand its container deposit and refund program to include all milk containers and those of dairy substitutes like soy and rice beverages. North Shore Outlook
Maine
September 14, 2011 The owner of SportsZone is pleading innocent in a first-of-its-kind fraud case in Maine. Dennis Reed is targeted in Maine's first prosecution under that state's returnable bottle law. Eagle-Tribune
Michigan
September 13, 2011 The Sixth Circuit has accepted an interlocutory appeal in American Beverage Assoc. v. Snyder, Case No. 11-2097, from a Michigan decision (pdf) holding that state-specific marking requirements for bottles and cans subject to deposit refunds does not per se violate the Commerce Clause. Squire Sanders
General
September 12th, 2011 BARRY ASKED THE QUESTION: While I was drinking a bottle of water, I noticed it said “CA, MI, OR, HI, 5 cents.” I know this means that the price includes a 5-cent return deposit, but there’s no chance I’ll return it to that store (it will go in the recycle bin). So, what happens to that 5 cents the store collected? Earth911
September 12, 2011 Coca-Cola still opposes bottle deposit measures despite a report that said the company is softening its stance. A report by As You Sow, an environmental advocacy group based in San Francisco, said Coca-Cola was now neutral on a "voluntary container deposit system administered by associated industries." Waste & Recycling News
Massachusetts
September 14, 2011 Chris Flynn, the beverage and supermarket lobbyist, is obviously confusing environmental responsibility with corporate greed. Hiding behind home-access to curbside recycling is not an example of "corporate responsibility," as Flynn wants us to think. The MetroWest Daily News
September 11, 2011 This year, the Legislature is considering an update to our container deposit system, adding beverages like bottled water, sports drinks, and juice drinks. The bottle bill, passed 30 years ago, has been our most effective program to prevent litter and is responsible for recycling 35 billion containers in Massachusetts so far. Our law has become a model for other states and nations. Worcester Business Journal
September 8, 2011 Let's face facts. The 5-cent deposit on carbonated bottles and cans, collected in Massachusetts since 1983, has worked. Today, 80 percent of beer and soda containers are recycled — more than twice the recycling rate for nondeposit containers. Cape Cod Times
Minnesota
September 8, 2011 Recycling aluminum represents a valuable portion of commodities in the U.S. ...While the national recycling rate for aluminum cans is about 58 percent, states with a container deposit law recycle 80 percent or more. Albert Lea Tribune
Australia
September 16, 2011 Greens believe a challenge to Northern Territory container deposit laws could lead to the introduction of a national scheme. The Territory scheme comes into effect next year but could face a legal challenge from drink company Coca-Cola Amatil. 774 ABC Melbourne
September 14, 2011 Coca-Cola Amatil has expressed plans to launch a legal action against the upcoming Northern Territory recycling initiative that would provide a $0.10 incentive for every plastic bottle returned to a beverage manufacturer. Australia Companies will shoulder the cost and Coca-Cola believes that the new law contradicts the Commonwealth Mutual Recognition Act... International Business Times
September 14, 2011 Clean Up Australia founder and chairman Ian Kiernan says a legal challenge to Northern Territory container deposit laws threatens the future of recycling around the nation. ABC News
September 12, 2011 The Northern Territory Government's new legislation to introduce a container deposit scheme in the NT in January has led to an industry outcry. The law will see a 10 cent deposit being put on cans and drink bottles that can be redeemed by Territorians when they take empty containers to a recycling depot. Katherine Times
September 11, 2011 Container deposit schemes operate in many parts of the world, in SA, and soon in the NT. Why will some firms go to great lengths to prevent them? Politicians often fear the financial and strategic might of big business - even when it's about who picks up the drink can or the beer bottles. ABC News
September 9, 2011 The maker of Coca-Cola in Australia says the beverage industry plans to take the Northern Territory Government to court over its container deposit plan. ABC News
September 8th, 2011 West Australians who are committed to making WA a world leader in the race to create a zero waste society found a silver lining around the cloud of recent news confirming this State has the worst rate of recycling in Australia. Talk to anyone from the mums and dads running your community sporting groups to local government councillors and you will find overwhelming support for a container deposit scheme...The West Australian
