Bottled water starting to flow into deposit systems in the U.S.

Earlier this year Oregon joined California, Hawaii and Maine as the states that include a deposit on bottled water. Soon two more states will follow: Connecticut and New York.

First up, Connecticut

Connecticut’s updated deposit system is scheduled to go into effect on October 1, 2009. First adopted 31 years ago, Connecticut’s bottle deposit law has remained essentially unchanged over the years with only slight increases added to the handling fee in the mid-1980s. The 2009 expansion however could usher in some significant changes. The biggest change is the inclusion of water bottles. About 500 million water bottles are currently sold annually in the state. If one applies the same overall redemption rate achieved on the current deposit containers in the state to water bottles, some 350 million additional containers per year could potentially be returned and recycled through the deposit system in Connecticut.

New York next

With 16 million more inhabitants than Connecticut, the dimensions relating to New York’s deposit system are considerably larger. Just over three billion water bottles are sold in New York every year. This could translate to two billion incremental containers being returned through the state’s deposit system annually once the updated law steps into effect next year. Clearly, the updated deposit laws in Connecticut and New York will contribute to greater recycling and significantly benefit the environment.

But they can also open up new opportunities for retailers and redemption centers to attract more recyclers and consequently gain customer traffic. According to Warren Stoll, Tomra North America Vice President of Sales and Marketing, “we have been receiving inquiries from people in these states who are considering investing in new automated return solutions as a strategic tool for gaining a competitive business advantage. In fact, in some cases, it also appears that the new legislation is creating a real incentive for entrepreneurial investment and job creation.”

• Updated deposit law scheduled for implementation on April 1, 2010.

• Beverages to be included: Beer, malt, carbonated soft drinks, mineral water, wine coolers, still water (not including water with sugar added, e.g. vitamin water).

• Containers covered: Any airtight metal, glass, paper, plastic, or combination of these materials, under 1 gallon.

• Deposit amount: 5 cents on all containers.

• Handling fee: 3.5 cents on all containers.