Josefa Marín and Pedro Romero have been collecting bottles for recycling for more than 10 years and are very hopeful with the resolution approved by the Municipal Council. With it, it is sought that Governor Kathy Hochul updates the Recyclable Container Law to increase the payment of each container from 5 to 10 cents.
“Let’s hope that they do listen to us and that they do increase us because it would be a great hope for us recyclers who, as you know, today everything has increased a lot, we are at high prices, not just rent, food, clothing, everything is suffered and it would be an advantage for us if they increased us”. says Marín, a packaging recycler.
The modification of this law, also known as the Bottle Law, which came into effect more than 40 years ago, also establishes that more types of non-carbonated beverage containers are included, such as juice, wine and spirits.
The purpose of this update is to encourage recycling.
“The large bottle, one and a quarter liters, weighs more, I tell him, so there would be many who, if they would load it, would haul it to the recycling centers, because the value deserves it,” adds Pedro Romero.
Ryan Castalia is the general manager of Sure We Can, a non-profit organization dedicated to recycling packaging. He says this change would prevent bottles, especially plastic ones, from ending up in landfills or the environment.
“It’s a very big plastic problem around the world and we need to find every way we can to reduce it to ensure that what’s sold is recycled as well, and that’s not the situation right now,” Castalia says.
The law has helped New York State reduce the amount of bottles thrown onto the streets by 70 percent.
But for states like Michigan, which pay 10 cents a bottle, the rate of change was nearly 90 percent in 2019, according to city council data.
“You don’t have to collect many. I think there are about 4,000 bottles to raise about 200 dollars ”, she assures.
And now that this resolution has been approved, it will go to the mayor, and if he gives it the green light, it will end up in the hands of the governor, who has the power to modify this law or not.
