February 22, 2011
Local students testify at capitol
Students at Crest Academy will travel to the State Capitol Wednesday to testify in favor of the bottle bill they helped create during five months of research and activism.
A press conference will be held at 11:45 a.m., followed by a committee meeting with nine members of the House of Representatives at 1:30 p.m. The committee will decide if the bill continues to the House.
Crest Academy director and teacher Karen Lundberg said four or five students will present during the meeting and two during the press conference.
"The students are prepared to make comments to the press and have been working on testimonials," she said.
State Rep. Don Pabon (D-Denver) and Sen. Gail Schwartz (D-Snowmass Village) introduced the bill Feb. 7.
Schwartz said a key factor to creating House Bill 11-1247 was the effort by Crest Academy students.
Prompted by a student project about the Great Pacific Garbage Patches and viewing the film "Tapped" in September, Crest students researched bottle bills in other states and the positive effect those bills have had on waste reduction.
Student research showed states with a bottle bill have as much as a 95 percent return rate on bottles.
The proposed bottle bill, or container deposit law, requires consumers pay 5 cents on every bottle purchase with the intention of redeeming the bottle and regaining their nickel, encouraging recycling and increasing money for Colorado schools.
The bill requires 40 percent of unredeemed deposit money be used for the state education fund for K-12 schools.
If HB 11-1247 is passed, Colorado will join 11 other states and territories with bottle bills - California, Connecticut, Guam, Hawaii, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Oregon and Vermont.
By Jan. 1, 2013, consumers will be required to pay 5 cents to beverage dealers for off-site consumption.
Charlotte Karls of Salida, a parent of a sixth-grade student, said, "I think it's been a very exciting way to learn about government. They are actually doing the democratic process, not just reading about it."
Eighth-grader Charles Kattering wrote, "My interest in the future is because I'm going to spend the rest of my life there. Tomorrow belongs to people who prepare for it today."
Lundberg said the motto students used to promote their bill was "throwing away bottles is throwing away our future."
Students created a website for the bottle bill, http://coloradobottlebill.yolasite.com/ where students provide contact information for representatives, and request calls in support of the bill.
http://www.themountainmail.com/main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=21693
