Some Iowa groups and consumers say it's time to redeem Gov. Robert Ray's favorite piece of legislation: the 1979 "bottle bill," which was drained of its potency in 2022 with the passage of SF 2378.

"Many people ask, 'What is the most common thing you find when cleaning the river?' By far, the most common item we pick up is the plastic bottle. The [LL&W] team and volunteers pick up tens of thousands of plastic bottles every year in addition to hundreds of aluminum cans and glass containers."

Interesting perspective on litter and community from Japan. How can we implement/cultivate some of these strategies in Iowa City?

New York isn't the only place working towards a bottle bill! Legislators and advocates in Washington D.C. are advancing a bill that would include a dime deposit for bottled and canned beverages sold there ♻️⭐️

streetsensemedia.org/article/bott...

This definitely seems like something Iowa City could do along the major trails and business areas outside downtown (where they already have the downtown ambassadors doing similar work).

Side note...where might one get one of those amazing litter-picking bicycles? 😍

The Litter Crew picks up a huge amount of plastic in just the small area we patrol regularly. Something needs to be done on a larger scale, starting with fixing and expanding our bottle bill.

Roving bands of citizens...doing good.

It's a local problem, and a global problem. What should be done about it?

If you see something...DO something! All you need is a pair of gloves and a bag.

When restoration work along a local trail shredded plastic bags and other litter, a trail user spent an hour picking up the scraps.

It doesn't take much for one person to make a big difference.

Iowans understand our Bottle Bill is important. Our lawmakers need to take action and strengthen it:

1. Increase the deposit to 10 cents
2. Expand to include water bottles and other containers not currently covered.

The top 5 brands responsible for litter the Iowa City Litter Crew has picked up:

1. McDonald's
2. Great Value (Walmart)
3. Kirkland (Costco)
4. Anheuser-Busch
5. Hyvee

The last 4 are almost entirely single-use beverage containers that a better bottle bill would help prevent.

Not only do bottle bills help keep litter off our roadways and out of our waterways, they are also incredibly effective at making sure plastic and glass gets recycled as it should be.

Any lawmakers in Iowa who are against our bottle bill and find it "incredibly problematic"... the Iowa City Litter Crew would like to invite you to come pick up litter with us for a couple of months and tell us whether you feel the same. Bottle bills work. Fix them, don't undermine them.

A bottle bill Bill of Rights posted wherever deposit bottles are sold? That would be a great way to continue awareness about the deposit program and tell people how to redeem, especially since the changes that drastically cut the number of redemption centers in recent years.

What kind of fantastical beast should the litter crew create from water bottles and other trash we pick up?

The Litter Crew can attest that a better bottle bill is needed. Expand to include water bottles and other containers, increase the deposit to a dime, and get back to the original intent of the bill from almost 50 years ago.

ICLC returned to Whispering Meadows Wetland Park Saturday morning. 5 volunteers spent 2+ hours cleaning up both the area around the Indigo Ct. playground and around the pond off Lakeside Dr.

Dry conditions allowed volunteers to get into areas that are normally under water, too, for a great haul!

50 single-use beverage containers in 30 seconds, all picked up on a single morning walk.

We can do better.

#bottlebill
#iowabottlebill
#betterbottlebill

More of this, please.
www.thecooldown.com/green-busine...