Recycle or else? New law takes effect
An excerpt:
On Oct. 1, House Bill 1465 went into effect. The state law requires recycling of plastic bottles made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The bottles are identified by the recycle symbol with the numeral 1 inside and are typically used for water and soft drinks.
Even though it’s illegal to toss plastic soda bottles into landfills, don’t expect a visit from the bottle police—unless you’re a deliberate violator. Blair Pollock, Orange County solid waste planner, said the ban will help the county raise consciousness on recycling. “It saves energy, creates wealth from waste and reduces use of our scarce and valuable landfill space,” Pollock said.
Tags: indyweek, landfills, North Carolina, plastic bottles, plastic soda bottles, Raleigh, solid waste, state law
Related posts:
Well, I suppose it’s a step in the right direction but an unfortunate method to accomplish the goal of recycling. I’m not so sure I’d like to have such an unenforceable law versus a true bottle bill that offers an incentive to recyclers – a deposit of 5 cents (or in some states, 10 cents) is applied at the point of purchase. The deposit is returned to the consumer when bottles are turned in at a recycling center and/or retail outlet. In many states they have the entire process automated. Machines at grocery stores accept your empties, and money comes out of the machine in exchange. Now, that would give consumers incentive not to pollute, and instead to recycle their used bottles… or at least someone will. North Carolina is way behind the times, let’s just hope it catches up sooner than later.