Deposit return scheme (recycling) - Part 2

another one, Buying boxes of beer off small producer in Ireland, not being charged the tax, but able to get refund of the tax 🤷🏼‍♂️

Maybe it’s part of the beer per can cost but it’s not shown as seperate charge

That's why loads of people ate getting DPF and Advlue mapped out of their cars.

I think the return machines will eventually be scrapped and the charge will just be kept as a tax.

Greenwashing is a bad in Ireland as I've seen anywhere. Saying that we invented these sort of schemes after all.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Hospitals%27_Sweepstake

Getting and retaining money you are not entitled to is the charge I am laying on them. I think that's fair.

Re-turn must be, at this time, preparing the narrative to explain the unclaimed reserve mountain of cash accumulated after year 1.

I would say it's heading for €100m and still growing, but they may be able to creatively pick a reporting year end date like 30 June 2024 to hide most of it for another 12 months.

Some tactics we might expect to explain away any concerns about the 9-figure cash reserve:

1. Claiming that millions of bottles are sitting under sinks, in garages, car boots etc. So, out of prudence, re-turn need to make sure we have €100m in ready money for these returns. They could all come back tomorrow, after all.
2. Re-turn operating expenses, it turns out, ran a little higher than forecast but don't worry it was just year one stuff. (Who would have thought it: operational inefficiency (and doing stuff like buying the best PR money can buy) saved their blushes by burning off some of the massive cash reserves)
3. Reminding us all that Re-turn is for the community and the environment, so any cash mountain will benefit the community and environment. And with this good news, there is no need to get specific, we will 'in due course' and 'following consultation' decide on the most worthy projects to spend it on.
4. Reminder that re-turn has made a great start, among the best anywhere in the world, but we want to do even better. Re-turn plan to reinvest €25m plus in unclaimed deposits on advertising to educate the public and reach out goals sooner We will spend this huge amount of money in appropriate media outlets (now: any more questions from the press?).
5. The directors are 'not actually surprised' because this is 'the experience in other countries' for year one, and our visionary, genius-like leaders, expected it, and planned for it all along. See points 3 and 4.

It will be interesting to see how they explain it, I wonder when we will hear some numbers? It would be nice to see them questioned on it before an Oireachtas committee but I can't see it happening.

If there is a vast mountain of money left unclaimed, that would be an argument for varying the scheme. This is provided for in the legislation. Trump's madness may lead to a change in behaviour, if living standards fall. Otherwise a One Euro deposit may be needed to bring people to their senses.

"The Minister may set, and adjust, the deposit amount or amounts after consultation with an approved body, where it appears that –

(a) the cost is insufficient to incentivise consumers to return in-scope bottles and in-scope containers to the scheme, or

(b) the revenues returned to the approved body from the scheme are exceeding or are insufficient to cover operational costs."

Is the unclaimed money all from people not retuning their containers and redeeming the cash?

Yes, all of it.

Some though would be normal, i.e. because there is a lag between buying an item and bringing it back, some deposits accrue. But a large portion and growing are for bottles thrown away or recycled outside DRS.

€1 would probably not encourage some people. Not only do they not bother with their 15/25 cents, they throw away a lot of the liquid as well. It's a sign of how prosperous the country is.

Indeed. But it would encourage more people to root through bins and leave waste all over the street, in search of lucrative 1 euro cans.

If DRS has spare money, they should be made invest some of it in providing more secure public bins.

Yes, true, but the amount of cash is inversely proportionate to the schrmes success.

A high accumulation of cash indicates the scheme is not meeting it's collection targets, and / or engaging consumers.

How much of the 54 million is still recycled?

Isnt the aim of the scheme to get people to recycle?

increasing the price of a can to 2.15 from 1.15 isnt increasing the deposit, it is increasing the price of the product.

If you increase the deposit to 30 cent, the can should still cost 1.15, but you get 30 cent back instead of 15 cent.

containers can still be contaminated with DRS, the same as they can with home recycling.

I am not sure we should be encouraging people to drive and add unnecessary emissions and traffic to our roads, just to recycle a product, when the exact same thing can be done at home.

Waste companies will soon start fining people for not recycling, so home compliance will improve.

They cannot claim the 54 million hasnt been recycled. They dont know that, perhaps the waste companies do.

DRS introduced price rises from the start. a euro soft drink can went up to 1.15, with 15 cent the price of the deposit.

This is a product price increase, not a deposit. We may well see future "deposit" rises, but notice when they come that the price of the can does not stay at 1.15.

The long game will see the volume of cans/plastic bottle sales drastically reduce, which I assume is the real target.