NEIGHBORHOOD STORE ASSOCIATION
Summer 2008
Vol. 10 No. 2
Oregon Bottle Bill Update:
The Oregon Bottle Bill Task Force has been meeting throughout the year to develop a proposal for lawmakers to consider during the 2009 Oregon Legislative Session. Though various ideas have been discussed, large grocers and beverage distributors are pushing hard for a system of industry-financed redemption centers that would allow approximately 250 of Oregon’s 300 large grocery stores to prohibit in-store bottle returns.
Though there appears to be broad based support for some system of redemption centers, there is substantial opposition to the idea of abandoning in-store returns altogether. Environmental organizations and others argue that redemption centers are likely to be more inconvenient for recyclers and that replacing in-store returns with a system of redemption centers will decrease Oregon’s recycling rate. These groups point to the fact that recycling rates are substantially less in states that use redemption centers exclusively and do not allow in-store returns.
Other key issues before Oregon’s Bottle Bill Task Force are whether the redemption rate should be increased or whether the types of containers subject to the Bottle Bill should be expanded. While the grocery industry is recommending that lawmakers not address the issue of whether deposits should be raised until 2011, the Association of Oregon Recyclers and others are suggesting the Legislature should address the deposit issue simultaneously with the question of redemption centers. Specifically, the Association of Oregon Recyclers is proposing that lawmakers tie an increase in deposit amounts to redemption rates, so that if redemption centers cause recycling rates to go down, the deposit rate would correspondingly go up to encourage recycling.
The Oregon Bottle Bill Task Force has until Nov. 1, 2008 to develop a final set of recommendations for the 2009 Oregon Legislative Session. ONSA is actively participating in the discussions surrounding this debate, with the goal of minimizing the burden on small stores, without causing substantial harm to Oregon’s recycling rate. ONSA is interested in receiving feedback from retailers concerning this issue. If you have a suggestion, please e‑mail ONSA at: contact@onsa.net or call: (503) 316-9638.Inside:
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