WESTFIELD – An effort is all set to get underway to begin collecting signatures for an updated bottle bill on the 2014 ballot. The updated bill looks to expand on the five cent refund to deposits on sports drinks, water, juice, and other non-carbonated beverage containers.
According to the Massachusetts Public Research Interest Group, or MassPIRG, the wording for the ballot question needs to be evaluated by Attorney General Martha Coakley next week, at which point the question will be filed with the Secretary of the Commonwealth.
The formal collecting of signatures will then begin on September 18, according to MassPIRG.
So far, the bill is supported by 208 municipalities statewide, including Southwick and Westfield, enjoying a 77 percent public support rate across the state, according to a poll of residents conducted by MassINC, an independent think tank whose mission is to “promote a public agenda for the middle class and to help all citizens achieve the American dream” by using “non-partisan research, civic journalism and public forums to stimulate debate and shape public policy.”
Other area cities and towns voting to approve the bill include Becket, Blandford, Easthampton, Granby, Huntington, Northampton, Otis, Tolland, Southampton, and Springfield.
Original signers of the ballot question include Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, Fitchburg Mayor Lisa Wong, leaders of the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts, MassPIRG, Massachusetts Sierra Club, and the Environmental League of Massachusetts.
The bill is also enjoying the support of over 300 businesses statewide.
Governor Deval Patrick has voiced his support of the bill, as well as local legislators such as Representative William “Smitty” Pignatelli (D-Lenox) and Senator Benjamin Downing (D-Pittsfield), who has voted for the bill to be passed twice in the last year.
Some legislators however, are looking to get more info on the bill before weighing in.
“I like the general idea of recycling. My wife and I recycle a lot,” said Don Humason, Jr. (R-Westfield) Friday. “Opponents of it aren’t against recycling, they’re just thinking of other ways of doing it.”
Humason also said that the City of Westfield uses single stream municipal recycling, where all recyclables are thrown in together at a facility and sorted later. He worries that by flooding redemption centers with recyclables like boxes of juice, it may take up valuable space in these business’ buildings.
When asked of whether he would vote for the bill, Humason said it’s too early to tell.
“It’ll help clean up the roadside, and I like recycling,” he said. “But if this isn’t the right way (to do it), I want to find out the right way.”
The bill would seek to allow small businesses and family- owned stores the option to opt out of the new container deposits.
Super Phipps liquors, located on East Main Street, accepts the bottles and cans currently redeemable in Massachusetts, but still rejects many non-redeemable deposits.
The store’s owner, Jordan Phillips, is intrigued by the prospect of the bill.
“I’d be interested in updating the system if the bill was passed.” he said.
The Massachusetts Sierra Club says that the new updated bottle bill could give back up to $20 million dollars in state revenue.
Thirty years have passed since the bottle bill has seen an update, and according to MassPIRG, a third of all bottles consumed and deposited in the Commonwealth cannot be accepted by current container deposits.
Patrick Nagle, executive assistant for MassPIRG, said that the benefits of a revamped bill would include cleaner streets by reducing litter and offering an alternative to curbside recycling, which 50 percent of Americans do not have access to according to a 2011 study published in Biocycle titled “The State of Garbage in America”.
“We have tried to get the Legislature to pass this bill for years,” adds Nagle. “It is long overdue. The bottle bill is a proven success. It has successfully reduced litter in our parks, beaches and roadways. It has increased our recycling and reduced the cost of waste disposal for taxpayers in our cities and towns. As a result, it is very popular with the public.”
Recycling more also means that less bottles and containers will be taking up room in landfills or being incinerated at trash facilities, which inevitably release toxins into the air.
Recylcing advocates also say that handling and processing the bottles would create green jobs and will also offer the consumer incentive to recycle by offering a refund for the amount of products used.
The bottle bill currently states that wine, dairy products, natural fruit juices, non-carbonated drinks, and alcoholic beverages other than beer and other malt beverages are exempt from the law, along with any containers greater than two gallons in size, regardless of product type.
“This bill makes sense for the public, and filing it as a ballot question after years of trying to pass it in the Legislature reinforces that the citizens’ voice can and will be heard,” said Ryan Black, Director of the Massachusetts Sierra Club.
