County leaders asking lawmakers to revise Gov’s “Bottle Bill”
County executives and municipal recycling managers are urging Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state Legislature to make modifications to the proposed expansion of the Returnable Container Act, otherwise known as the “bottle bill,” which would add a deposit to sports drinks, energy drinks, fruit and vegetable beverages, and ready-to-drink coffees and teas.
The New York State Association of Counties acknowledges that the bill is well-intentioned, but they fear it will harm recycling programs that are already being threatened by volatility in the recycling market. For example, In 2017 and 2018, China implemented policy changes that resulted in a 90 reduction in the value of paper and a 63 percent loss in value of the traditional recycling stream.