Deposit return scheme (recycling) - Part 2

That isn't in any way normal

What types of bottles, and indeed where are you getting said bottles from?

It's an utterly meaningless figure. As if these wouldn't have been chucked into the green bin anyway. 🙄

Of course the majority of people are going to go through the hassle of dumping their bottles and cans. They want their money back that's being held to ransom by Re-turn. But it's not as if all of these items were going to be just chucked around the streets before return came along and saved us all.

First question indeed.

It seems as long as tenuous claims can be made about less litter being thrown round the streets / countryside then Re-Turn is a success. Nevermind the actual recycling. Bizarre really.

I really can't believe people are still raging about this. I use it and have no issue but from comments here you would swear that we are living in a post apocalyptic world

We are certainly recycling more and there is reduced rubbish on the streets in my area at least

Really? Re-Turn reports only on items returned, not recycled, for a start. They also throw out huge numbers without any indication of how many items were returned for the same period the previous year via domestic recycling bins. Recent reports state the overall level of littering, nationally, remains unchanged. I do a weekly litter pick in a rural area here and the number of bottles and cans hasn't shown any discernible decrease.

You have to give it to CEO Foley the lads on re-turn.ie

Theyve made a strong connection in people's minds between a container passing through the hole of an RVM and "recycle".

This is whats letting the producers off the hook and Id imagine when we see some sales stats for 2024 plastic container use will probably have increased.

Once again, no working RVM anywhere nearby. Who is responsible for emptying and maintaining those machines in shops? I reckon it’s ‘Re-Turn’? Or is it the shops somehow? I’d say this whole return scam isn’t working and needs to end now.

It's the shops job to keep the RVM working.

This is whats letting the producers off the hook and Id imagine when we see some sales stats for 2024 plastic container use will probably have increased.

It's what has happened in every country that I looked at that has this scheme.

There is a couple of reasons, but but but now I am really really recycling, I can use as much plastic as I want. The man said it.

The second reason is greed, again this was brought in under Single Use Plastic Directive, Cans which are not plastic were included as an extra cash grab.

You may have had some chance with people reducing their plastic use, but not really both, if have to go the machine anyway, why bother.

Again though the vast majority of all this was offered for recycling at home into bins that didn't tell you fúck off half the time.

For sure. Working a treat though. Producers profits go up.

Fuzzy recycle feeling for those that dont want to know where the containers really go.

Anyone questioning the DRS is called a raging eco-terrorist.

At least in other countries customers get a little carrot to go with the stick: IBAN refunds, crushed containers accepted, bulk bin liners dropped off at depots with a bar code, not having to pay higher prices for wheelie bins on top of the new scheme.

Any sign or news of more bulk machines being rolled out, I've a learner driver at home and we keep the returns and use the money back for petrol for the car for her, did a drive sunday for returns, 5 locations we had to visit before we found one working, thats a lot of driving around, was at an off-licence in the end had one working, had a great chat with the lad working about it. Busy day needs emptying once a day, might get two days, told me if it comes up as full while using it he cant empty it for us as he was on his own.

Big plastic bag in his machine and he has to go to rear of building to bring bin around front and no through way so bit of a trek, bag to heavy to carry around, he also commented on the smell, so he wasnt to impressed with the extra workload he had to tend to the machine,

we need more bulk machines and perhaps in better locations rather than small offlicence or small corner supermarkets centra/spar etc.

Fairly meaningless figres the real picture will be told between May 24 and May 25, the 12 months since the it became compulsory for drinks containers to carry the deposit

If our return rate is only ~50% that could spell trouble for the system as it was designed to bring our recycling rates from ~70% to up above 90%

The only one I've seen online is at the Spar in Newcastle Co Dublin.

We definitely need them to divert the heavy users away from the shop machines.

A possible location would be civic amenity sites.

Among the problems with those locations are that they would only be available when the site is open and also where would you be able to cash your receipt.

Maybe they could use electronic refunds.

Whats the inital figures before this scam is the very first one to ask