It would be an effective protest if enough people did the same. Re-Turn would fail to improve our stats to meet EU collection targets. Catchy phrases like "higher quality recyclate" from the Re-Turn CEO are green theatre and nothing more.
Re-Turn might slightly reduce street litter although there are conflicting reports on that. What is very clear is it does absolutely nothing to solve the problem of plastic usage.
It's not designed to solve the problem of single use plastic.
And it is an utterly ineffective protest with the rates of returns there are now.
We know. It was designed to let big producers ignore the problem of single use plastic.
The Single Use Plastics (SUP) Directive is the main driver for the introduction of Deposit Return.
https://re-turn.ie/
I know, it's hard keep up.
tic toc , you probably, subconsciously, not a ‘happy camper’ in doing what you are doing. So here is a suggestion that might bring a bit of satisfaction in earning a few euro for their efforts
In the hope that you are living in a village or town put your cans/ bottles in a clear plastic bag and leave outside your gate and see what happens. - maybe a discrete sign saying ‘take as required’ . You might be bringing a little happiness to some young fellows life and hopefully it will bring you some satisfaction/ happiness and might even ‘tickle your fancy’ - I do’nt know what exactly that means but it was an expression That was common to hear years ago
In the hope that you are living in a village or town put your cans/ bottles in a clear plastic bag and leave outside your gate and see what happens
The cans will be taken I imagine and the plastic bag fúcked in a bush or the off chance is gets thrown in the general direction of a bin that is already overflowing with plastic bags.
Then more consumption probably wrapped in plastic in whatever the kid decides to spend their couple of euro on.
But at least the environment wins, something something.
No it's just a small but important part of the initiative to reduce the overall problem of single use plastic.
As you said yourself it is focused on collection.
It's job is the separate collection of plastic drinks bottles up to 3 litres capacity. And of course aluminium cans.
The targets are there and the success or failure of Re-turn will be measured by whether it achieves them or not.
Even if
"it's just a small but important part of the initiative to reduce the overall problem of single use plastic."
How does DRS reduce the consumption of single use plastic?
Like I said it's just a small part of the SUP initiative.
On its own it will not reduce consumption.
The targets relevant to DRS are separate collection and recyclate content.
It is not a small part, as @Boggles posted and quoted,
I suggest that anyone with their head even’ half screwed on ‘. Will take the lot as they are already ‘bagged’ and ready for transport
Single use plastic is a much bigger issue than dealing with just the separate collection of some plastic beverage bottles.
The Directive allows EU member states to achieve the targets in whatever way they choose. If any of them can do it without a DRS scheme, that could be a model for others to follow. But as things stand, DRS is becoming the standard, and not just in the EU. There are many other targets, apart from separate collections of PET and aluminium.
https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/plastics/single-use-plastics_en
https://www.tomra.com/en-ie/reverse-vending/deposit-return-schemes-faq/which-countries-have-deposit-return-scheme
Producers will be led by the other main polluter in the chain, consumers. If consumers are willing to reuse and refill containers, then that market will be serviced. Some of it happening already with coffee cups.
if some boardies on here are against the SUP bottle then what might you suggest as a replacement. We must remember that any bottle container - especially with regards to drinks for consumption have to be purchased in some kind of a container that is safe - will not easily split or crack-‘ is hygienic, etc. Maybe - the solution is that we tank up with water all the time when we need a drink from our constantly present water bottle. or re our favourite drinks - buy it in ,say, 10 litre amount at a time- using your reusable container- and have at home . Then top up your 2nd water bottle with it and away you go The retail/ drinks sector would then have to be set up to supply such drinks in bulk/dispensor containers
Other - hair brained-suggestions around the issue are welcome !!!!!!!!
I never suggested they would not. You have addressed no point I raised in my post.
Not up to "boardies" to come up with solutions. That should be primarily the producers, but they as usual have been given a pass.
The system already in place for households was perfectly fine. Households is where the vast majority of these containers were used. It was up to the regulators and collection agents to make it better.
When that was pointed out, the creators of the scam pivoted to it was a litter collection scheme on the go.
The councils have absolved themselves with anything to do with litter management and have done so quite rapidly.
In order to identify a solution you first need to identify the problem.
No country that I have looked at that has this scam have in any instance reduced their use of single use plastic, the opposite is in fact true.
It's Green Theatre pure and simple.
Cashed in my Christmas cans and bottles this morning at the local lidl. The screen asked if I wanted to add the ~€15 to my lidl plus app. Makes sense so sure why not? Opened the app, scanned the QR code and got the message on the screen saying 'login failed' which was quickly followed by a receipt bring printed with my money on it
Nice idea, but poorly implemented
I've seen in some SuperValu stores they have water refill machines. Bring your own 5L or 10L bottles and refill them for a few euro. No reason the same couldn't work for other drinks
I think what they should have done long before introducing DRS, is re-nationalising waste collection, otherwise the separation of waste will place an unfair financial cost on the public.
I think something like that would need a more liberal government at the top of the food chain though
Push the majority of the problem onto those that actually profit from the current distribution methods - the producers. Make THEM change their ways, make them pile some money into R and D (that they can claim back in tax breaks) and actually do something about the issue.
If this isn't pushed back on the producers who make tens of millions in profit annually, nothing will change. Lip service to some scheme that is environmentally unfriendly, doesn't actualy lead to reductions in plastic use in the sector and will ultimately fail to do anything positive for the environment isn't the answer.
Lots of people country wide are against this scheme - but have no choice to either engage with it OR reduce the amount of product they buy (which hopefully is happening, but would require a higher deposit to truely make any difference).
There wasn't a national waste collection in the past. It was a Local Authority operation, and they used local landfill for disposal. Funded from the Rates before they were abolished. When that income was not replaced fully from central funds, the LA's brought in bin charges. But they were ineffective in collecting those, so that led to privitisation. There is no chance that the funding of refuse collection will be handed back to the LA's.
followed by
You cant desperately attempt to link Re-Turn to SUP when it suits you.
Which is it?
What type of drinks are you thinking about?
In my experience with anything fizzy it goes fairly flat if not used with about a day or two of the seal being opened.
It's both.
I use a couple of sports water bottles filled from the tap.
I don't like soft drinks so I don't buy them.
I have filled bottles of orange juice from store dispensers in France but I think demand would be low for that here.
So Re-Turn is not part of the SUP solution but it also is 😅
Re-Turn fanatics are as bad as the Re-Turn website:
Same as those EU "recycling" targets which dont exist in the directive. Only collection targets.
You seem to be deliberately misinterpreting for some reason.
To clarify once more,
the problem of SUP is much bigger than just plastic beverage bottles.
Re-turn is tasked with dealing with plastic beverage bottles.
If it succeeds in reaching it's targets that will reduce the bigger problem but not solve it.
I misinterpret nothing.
You constantly come on here ignoring facts, attempting to sit between 2 stools and paint Re-Turn as a huge step forward for the environment.
It's not even a partial SUP solution as you claim. Re-Turn has achieved exactly nothing with regard to SUP.
To anyone who can look at Re-Turn in real terms it represents a container collection farce accountable to no-one with a huge carbon footprint increase on what we had previously thrown in for good measure.
Take a look at the board of ReTurn, talk about putting the fox in to guard the hen house. Any changes to limit the use of single use plastics will cost many of these companies money, ie less profits.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/51205140
Although the company has some plans to tackle the amount of plastic it uses, Bea Perez said the company wouldn't ditch plastic outright because it could put customers off and affect the firm's sales.
Tho, in fairness there is also this quote,
She also said that using only aluminium and glass packaging could actually push up the firm's carbon footprint.
I don't know enough to comment on that, tho I tend to doubt it.
I did a hike howth - summit - howth yesterday. Did the same end of 2024, and collected bottles worth almost 10 euro. Yesterday, i could find not a single one, despite the Village very busy.
From a litter point, DRS seems to work quite well.
You went on a hike and came down with almost 40 plastic bottles?
😂
