Think bigger than bottle bill

By The Gazette Editorial Board

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Lawmakers are back again with a proposal to tweak Iowa's 35-year-old bottle bill.

It's clear that changes are in order. The once-landmark anti-littering legislation now doesn't quite hit the mark.

Consumer habits have changed since the law first was passed; costs have risen; recycling programs are more readily available. Still, despite years of trying, legislators have been unable to pass changes to the law that address these problems.

We doubt this bill will get much farther than other recent proposals to expand and update the law.

It's time for some new ideas about how to bring anti-littering and recycling efforts in line with current realities.

According to the Iowa recycling Assocation, the bottle bill captures about 86 percent of the 1.9 billion deposit-eligible beverage containers sold in Iowa each year.

Iowans recycle an average of 563 containers per person each year. That's the good news.

But a large number of beverage containers sold today aren't covered under the law.

This year's proposal, not much different from previous attempts, would apply the nickle-per-bottle deposit to water bottle and other beverage containers - significant contributors to the state waste stream that were rare sights back when the first bottle bill was passed in 1978.

Proponents say Senate Study Bill 1247 would keep 33 tons of beverage containers out of Iowa landfills - a worthy goal.

The bill also would increase some of the handling fees - which have been stuck at a penny per bottle for 35 years - paid to redemption centers.

The bill would increase those from 1 cent to 2 cents on plastic containers. That's a step in the right direction.

Still, critics argue the deposit system of can and bottle redemption is a cumbersome and old-fashioned way to reduce trash and waste - a throwback that should be scrapped altogether. They may be right.

Even if legislators are able to pass changes, improving the bottle bill, it's time to think of a better plan.

A plan that makes comprehensive, convenient and affordable recycling options available to all Iowans. A plan that finds contemporary solutions to problems of litter and waste.

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