On April 15, the joint legislative Committee on Environment and Natural Resources heard testimony regarding six proposed bills that would amend aspects of the Bottle Bill – the 1976 bill that created the deposit on returnable bottles.
The committee will take the bills up in a work session later this month, prior to any of the bills going before the legislature for a vote.
The Bottle Bill was first passed in 1976, and a 1979 attempt to repeal it failed, when 85 percent of Mainers voted to keep the Bottle Bill.
The Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) estimates the Bottle Bill has created an 85-95 percent return rate on Maine’s bottles, making it the state’s most successful recycling program.
The Bottle Bill also creates more than 1300 jobs, according to NRCM’s statistics.
The Maine Beverage Association – an industry group made up of beverage distributors – is the primary opponent of the Bottle Bill. They argue the bill creates a financial strain by requiring them to pay redemption centers, and the requirements the frequency of bottles must be picked up from redemption centers are too strict.
According to testimony given on April 15, the beverage industry pays out about $30 million per year to redemption centers. That cost is not entirely offset by revenue from selling the empty bottles to recycling centers and revenue from unclaimed bottle deposits, which many large distributors are allowed to keep.
Reductions to the scope of the Bottle Bill have met staunch opposition from redemption centers and environmental advocates.
Margo McFarland, owner of Standpipe Redemption in Newcastle, said at least one of the bills being considered would put her out of business.
“No question,” McFarland said. “This would take out two thirds of redemption centers.”
Last year, Standpipe processed over 3 million bottles, not including wine and liquor, many of those collected by local schools and nonprofits as part of fundraising efforts.
Earlier this month, Lincoln Academy raised $927.50 by returning 18,550 bottles. Lincoln County Animal Shelter raised $371.15 by returning 7423 bottles. For South Bristol School, “it’s nothing for them to raise $200 to $300 per month from their bottles,” McFarland said.
The six bills discussed on April 15 met with limited support, said Gary Jones, Redemption Manager for Returnable Services, who attended the hearing.
Returnable Services owns a recycling processing center in Portland, several redemption centers and picks up bottles from redemption centers for several smaller distributors.
The bills affect different parts of the Bottle Bill, but what many are calling the most dramatic of the bills would remove any bottle over 28 ounces from the program and make the deposit 5-cents on every bottle, instead of 15-cents for wine and liquor bottles.
The bill is co-sponsored by Rep. Dana Dow of Waldoboro. However, in a telephone interview April 14, Dow said he does not support any aspect of the bill he co-sponsored except the uniform 5-cent deposit.
Dow supports the uniform deposit rate as a way to simplify the process. McFarland, Jones and NRCM spokesmen said they have no problem with the uniform deposit. Redemption centers are paid the same amount for all bottles, regardless of the amount of the deposit.
“I just wanted to make sure I got a chance to testify at the hearing,” Dow said. “I want to make sure we keep recycling and don’t cut back on the program.”
