The Government has revealed that it plans to introduce the deposit return scheme in England for single-use drinks containers (plastic, glass or metal), subject to consultation later this year.
The consultation will look at the details of how such a scheme would work, alongside other measures to increase recycling rates.
It said that similar schemes already operated in countries such as Denmark, Sweden and Germany, which see consumers pay an up-front deposit when they buy a drink, ranging from 8p in Sweden to 22p in Germany. This is then redeemed on return of the empty drink container.
Marine environment
“We can be in no doubt that plastic is wreaking havoc on our marine environment – killing dolphins, choking turtles and degrading our most precious habitats,” said environment secretary Michael Gove.
“It is absolutely vital we act now to tackle this threat and curb the millions of plastic bottles a day that go unrecycled. We have already banned harmful microbeads and cut plastic bag use, and now we want to take action on plastic bottles to help clean up our oceans.”
Helen Munday, chief scientific officer, FDF, said: “FDF members strongly support moves to reduce litter and marine pollution and to increase recycling in the UK.
Kerbside recycling
“Current evidence suggests that building on the success of kerbside recycling and improving capture rates of on-the-go recycling is a very sustainable way to increase recycling and reduce littering. Before a completely new system such as deposit return is introduced, care needs to be taken to ensure that all schemes can work in synergy and that any new elements are easy to understand and operate and are cost-effective.
“We are fully committed to working with Government and other stakeholders to find the necessary reforms to deliver these outcomes and we are keen to consider any new evidence that emerges as part of the deposit return scheme consultation.”