A battle is brewing between bottle bill proponents and opponents in Hawaii. Advocates of the bottle bill propose that beverage distributors pay the state a fee for each bottle or can sold. It suggested $.05 for single-serving bottles and $.15 for larger ones, to be refunded to the consumer for each empty bottle or can returned. An additional $.02 would cover the cost of collecting aluminum, glass and plastic for recycling.
Countering this approach, a group of beverage distributors in the state formed a group, Hawaii Citizens for Comprehensive Recycling, and asked the legislative conference committee considering the bottle bill to give it a chance to propose an alternative.
Last week, the beverage industry group unveiled its plan to the Hawaii legislators.
Their plan proposes to double residential recycling by offering curbside service in urban areas and increasing recycling drop-off points in rural areas. It would offer "twice the recycling at a quarter of the cost," according to Charlie Scott of Cascadia Consulting Group of Seattle.
A key element of the bottlers proposal would change how Hawaii counties bill for trash service. Trash pickup costs now are incorporated into property taxes, a method that makes people perceive it as "free," Scott said.
The "pay-as-you-throw" concept would charge residential trash customers by the size of their trash cans, with higher fees for larger cans, as is being done in several mainland cities. The consultants think when charged by volume, people would throw out less, allowing twice-a-week pickup to be reduced to once a week, supplemented by recycling and yard-waste pickups every other week.
Proponents say this can be done for $5 million a year, compared with the $20 million cost of the bottle bill. The money would come from county and state governments, rather than beverage consumers and distributors.
But bottle bill proponents question the feasibility of this move
The industry plan says it would recycle 33,000 more tons per year of glass, paper, plastics and other materials -- almost double the 17,000 tons the bottle bill would recycle.
Opponents of the bottlers plan also note that the program focuses on residential pickups, so it does not address beverages consumed away from home.
The bottle bill proposes:
* A 5-cent deposit on each bottle or can, refundable to the consumer, and a 2-cent fee, which would pay for the cost of collecting the containers for recycling. (A larger deposit, such as 15 cents, probably would be made for larger containers.)
* Both store-based and independent redemption centers could be certified by the state Health Department to receive used containers for a deposit.
The Curbside Alternative
Hawaii Citizens for Comprehensive Recycling, a group of beverage distributors, proposes that the state instead:
* Restructure county residential garbage pickup fees based on the volume of trash thrown away.
* Provide curbside recycling service in urban areas every other week, and reduce garbage pickup to once from twice a week.
* Find cheaper ways to transport recyclable materials to Asia or the U.S. mainland for processing.
* Provide incentives and assistance to develop island markets for some recyclables.
* Offer educational and promotional campaigns about recycling.
However, when shown the proposal, according to local press reports, legislators showed little favor for the bottling industry's recycling report.
While some House representatives lauded the effort of the industry-sponsored Hawaii Citizens for Comprehensive Recycling in putting the report together, others said the report missed the mark. Hawaii Star-Bulletin