Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda

Each year Americans use about 50 billion water bottles, unfortunately, less than half of these bottles get recycled and the vast majority end up in landfills or in our waterways. In the near future, I will be introducing companion legislation with Representative Melissa Shusterman that will create a bottle deposit program in the Commonwealth to encourage recycling and ensure that our rivers, streams, and air are free of pollution. This proposal will include a tiered refundable deposit that corresponds to the size of each plastic, glass, or metal bottle or can. Consumers will receive their deposit back upon returning the bottles to be recycled. Uncollected deposits will then be directed to the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Fund. 
 

Several other states have enacted bottle deposit legislation, all of which have seen an increase in recycling participation, and in turn, a decrease in bottles sent to landfills, littered on the streets, or littered in our waterways. Bottles that end up in landfills are often incinerated, causing air pollution that has adverse effects on humans and wildlife.  
 

At this time, please join me in co-sponsoring this legislation that will provide Pennsylvanians with an easy and accessible way to recycle their used bottles and cans.