No one knows yet how the post-caronovirus economy will feel, and the government has already announced that in July 2021 an unpleasant surprise awaits all lovers of soft drinks: the cost of all drinks sold in plastic bottles up to 1 liter will rise in price by 15 cents. The increase will occur due to an increase in the so-called deposit part of the cost of drinks, that is, the price that we pay, but we can return if we hand over a plastic bottle for recycling. This is another measure by which the Dutch government plans to reduce the amount of non-recyclable plastic discarded. Now the Dutch ministers have decided to deal with this problem, as they would say in Russia, “with the ruble,” since all the previous measures did not help.
For bottles with a capacity of more than one liter, the already valid deposit of 25 cents is still retained. The government hopes that the thrifty Dutch, by paying a higher price for their favorite drinks, will be more conscious about the delivery of plastic containers, and thus we can all together reduce the level of damage caused to nature by plastic annually.
Tin cans do no less harm to nature, but what decision will be made regarding them is still unknown. In this situation, it is difficult not to recognize the wise move of the Dutch Cabinet of Ministers: the government gives producers a chance to independently solve waste problems until 2022, and if they fail, the government authorities will gladly help them, but then they will not have a chance to participate in the development of this solution. ... It is logical to assume that a deposit will be introduced for cans as well, because, for sure, beverage manufacturers will try to switch from plastic bottles to cans in order to avoid an increase in the cost of their products.
By the way, peace negotiations were also held with plastic manufacturers at first, but all this ended first with an ultimatum: either the packers will reduce the amount of garbage by 70-90% by next fall, or introduce deposits, and then introduce a deposit. So in the near future, we should expect the emergence of new collection points not only in supermarkets, but also at gas stations and train stations.
Conservationists and most of the country's municipalities support such measures. Indeed, the responsibility for the implementation of the new scheme will lie entirely with the manufacturers. The latter are not at all happy. According to them, the projected benefits are not commensurate with the costs. They are joined by supermarkets, which will also face additional costs for organizing the circulation of plastic containers.
Publication Date: 27.04.2020
