Fw: [Energy Cte] Bottle LTE

[Matilda Banga]

did u c this

Matilda Kamara
Ag. OFA Montgomery County Chapter co-lead
2015 Spring Fellow
phone: 571-405-8621
twitter: @OFAMatildak



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--- On Thu, 3/3/16, Kevin Kriescher <kjkri...@hotmail.com> wrote:

> From: Kevin Kriescher <kjkri...@hotmail.com>
> Subject: [Energy Cte] Bottle LTE
> To: "mdsierra-e...@googlegroups.com" <mdsierra-e...@googlegroups.com>
> Date: Thursday, March 3, 2016, 12:49 PM
>
>
>
>  Hello team,
> Below is a 2/29 Baltimore Sun article on the efficacy
> of the Bottle Bill. But many people disconnect when they are
> urged to contact their representatives because they
> don't know how. An LTE might supply the simple steps: go
> to MD General Assembly website, enter address to find reps,
> urge them to vote for HB862 with a brief comment as to why
> (or something like that). If you've lived in a
> state with a bottle bill as I have in NY, you might remind
> people how well it works. A very important point is
> that it does not erase curbside recycling - with another
> channel the waste decreases. Finally, the article does not
> mention how the closed loop of nickels that exists in the
> bottle bill actually puts additional money into the economy
> (those above returning trash to get their nickels back
> fund this).
>  
> Baltimore Sun_(baltimoresun.com)
>
>
> LTE: talk...@baltimoresun.com
> (< 300 wds printed, but anything with substance may
> appear online)
>
>
> Op-Ed: comme...@baltsun.com
> (600-750 wds)
>  
>
> Kevin
> Kriescher
>
>
> MD Sierra LTE and Op-Ed
> Team
>
>
> kjkri...@hotmail.com
>
>
> 315-212-3445
>
>
>
>  
> Bottle bill would
> reduce litter, increase recycling
>  
> States with both a
> bottle bill and curbside pickup have higher rates of
> recycling.
> Every
> year in Maryland, 3 billion beverage containers are thrown
> away or end up as litter. That is 3 billion plastic, glass
> and aluminum containers that end up being landfilled,
> incinerated or washed up on beaches and river banks.
> Just 25 percent of the beverage containers purchased in our
> state actually end up being recycled. Estimates from the
> American Beverage Association provide one explanation; 30
> percent to 50 percent of beverage containers are consumed
> away from home in locations such as parks, schoolyards,
> boats and cars, where little or no recycling collection is
> available.
> Another reason is that
> despite the fact that most people in Maryland now have
> access to curbside recycling, they don't all
> participate. The Maryland Redeemable Beverage Container
> Recycling Refund and Litter Reduction Act — aka the
> "Bottle Bill" — offers a financial incentive for
> people to recycle and collect litter.
> The reduction in litter and increased recycling rates
> afforded by a Bottle Bill will provide both economic and
> environmental benefits to our state. Less litter will reduce
> litter collection costs to counties and improve property
> values. Increased recycling will divert material away from
> the municipal waste stream, reducing the tipping fees paid
> by counties to dump trash.
>
> Environmental benefits include the reduction of toxic
> pollutants to Maryland's air and water. At the
> Wheelabrator Incinerator in Baltimore City, thousands of
> plastic bottles are incinerated every day. Burning plastic
> bottles releases heavy metals such as cadmium and lead,
> along with toxic chemicals such as dioxin, a known human
> carcinogen. According to the Canadian Institute for
> Environmental Law and Policy, "burning plastic is a
> major source of toxic air emissions" that eventually
> end up in our water as well.
> Expanding single-stream curbside recycling alone will not
> achieve an acceptable recycling or litter reduction rate.
> Curbside is now available to most single family homes in the
> state and currently recovers only one out of every four
> bottles and cans. Independent research from the
> Congressional Research Service concludes that both a bottle
> deposit program and a curbside recycling program are
> necessary to achieve high recycling rates.
>  
> The data clearly show that states with both a bottle bill
> and a curbside program have recycling rates of at least 67
> percent. Michigan, Oregon, Washington, New York and
> Connecticut all demonstrate this point. Under this system,
> all have experienced dramatic increases in container
> recycling and a dramatic reduction in litter and waste
> disposal fees.
>  
> For the extraordinary privilege of living in this beautiful
> state on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay we also have
> significant responsibilities to protect, preserve and
> restore the land, air and water. The Maryland Redeemable
> Beverage Container Recycling Refund and Litter Reduction Act
> will achieve measurable improvements to the quality of life
> in Maryland.
>  
> I urge you to please contact your state and local
> representatives and ask them to support the Maryland's
> Bottle Bill.
> Bess Carlson
>
>
>
>
>
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