SereneDreams03 t1_j7wn0x8 wrote
Reply to comment by ommanipadmehome in Oregon's beverage industry cooperative pushes to impose Bottle Deposit in Washington... by Ravenparadoxx
The problem is that so much of the material that gets thrown into recycling bins in Washington doesn't actually get recycled. It's either contaminated or simply can't be recycled.https://ecology.wa.gov/Waste-Toxics/Reducing-recycling-waste/Strategic-policy-and-planning/Contamination-reduction Oregon's system has its own problems, but it at least does a better job of achieving its purpose of actually recycling materials.
ommanipadmehome t1_j7wo2vu wrote
No evidence it wouldn't be worse with the proposed law. Tons of people would pitch cans rather than deal with the returns. There would also be huge backlash adding further to grocery costs yo already high inflation as well free time. It would be a huge mistake.
SereneDreams03 t1_j7wq55g wrote
>No evidence it wouldn't be worse with the proposed law. There is clear evidence Oregon does a better job than Washington at recycling https://productstewardship.net/news/recovery-and-recycling-rates-oregon-and-washington
https://www.columbian.com/news/2018/oct/07/comparing-washington-oregon-oversight-on-recycling/
>There would also be huge backlash adding further to grocery costs yo already high inflation as well free time.
Yeah, im sure there would be backlash, because people always seem to resist change. However, if you factor in the cost of processing fees and pickup costs, most people would actually be saving money with the deposit system.
It is $9.17 a month for recycling pickup in my area. With Oregons system, I'd pay an extra 10 cents per container, but I'd get that money back when I returned them. So I'd be saving $9.17 a month.
ommanipadmehome t1_j7wv9b3 wrote
Guess your gas is free and time has no value.
SereneDreams03 t1_j7wz3yo wrote
They have dropoff locations at grocery stores, so you can just drop the cans off when you go grocery shopping. So, yes, it isn't costing me anymore in gas and minimal extra time dropping off the cans.
I_like_boxes t1_j7yclcx wrote
Do you not recycle anything else? We drink a decent amount of cans of soda per month, but most of our recycling is still paper and boxes. Having an extra step in recycling cans doesn't change the fact that we still have other recycling, so it wouldn't really be saving any money.
It's been years since I dealt with bottle returns and the amount you get back just never seemed worth the effort. I would much rather pay an extra $10/mo just to not have to ever go anywhere near a bottle return. When I was a kid, we'd just shove our cans in a bag until a random person would come knocking to ask if we had any cans.
ItDolph t1_j7wual8 wrote
This isn't really a "washington thing" though. Anywhere that has recycling will have this issue
SereneDreams03 t1_j7wx5wa wrote
It is not as much of an issue in Oregon though, that is my point.https://resource-recycling.com/plastics/2020/08/12/oregon-deposit-return-rate-increased-in-2019/amp/
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