Government Health & Environment

City Council Supports Revised Bottle Bill

bottlebillfigureBottle bills are laws that require a minimum refundable deposit on beverage containers in order to ensure a high rate of recycling or reuse. The current law was passed in 1983 and does not include many popular “new-age” drinks such as bottled waters, sports drinks, and juices. Currently the only beverages covered are carbonated soda, beer, and malt beverages.

Councillors John Connolly and Sal LaMattina sponsored the City Council Resolution in order to demonstrate to state lawmakers that the Boston City Council wants the Bill updated.
About a dozen bills related to the Beverage Container Recovery Law, including House Bill 3057 filed by Rep. Basile on behalf of Mayor Menino, are before state lawmakers this legislative session.

The Council approved the Resolution at its weekly meeting on Oct. 21.
The Massachusetts Chapter of the Sierra Club states on its website that about 20 billion “new-age” beverages are consumed annually in the U.S. and this number is expected to increase. It has been estimated that updating the law to include “new-age” drinks would increase recycling from the current rate of 20% of non-covered containers to as high as 80%, which would raise revenue for the Commonwealth, create jobs in the recycling sector, and greatly decrease litter. Janet Domenitz, Executive Director of MASSPIRG, a non-profit, non-partisan consumer advocacy organization, stated at the Oct. 8 Boston City Council hearing “that the Bottle Bill is an antidote to litter.” Domenitz testified that NY, ME, and CT have also updated their versions of the Bottle Bill.

The Council approved the Resolution at its weekly meeting on Oct. 21.

2 Replies to “City Council Supports Revised Bottle Bill

Comments are closed.