Deposit refunds for plastic containers ‘could save councils money’

CASH-STRAPPED COUNCILS could save up to £35 million a year from the introduction of a “deposit refund system” for drinks bottles and cans in England, a report suggests.

The schemes aim to boost recycling of single-use glass, plastic and aluminium drinks containers by charging a deposit when people buy them which is refunded when the container is returned to a collection point, for example at a shop.

The Scottish Government has announced plans to bring in a deposit refund system for bottles and cans, and Environment Secretary Michael Gove has said he will look at how a scheme could be introduced in England.

Councils have raised concerns that their introduction could lead to a reduction in local-authority income as people would use the schemes to recycle the valuable materials instead of using existing household kerbside recycling. But a study commissioned by a consortium of conservation, recycling and anti-litter organisations found that rather than costing councils money, it could save town halls across England millions of pounds a year.

Local authorities would lose some income as there would be a reduced number of cans and bottles collected from households to sell to recyclers, found the report, which looked at eight councils with both high and low recycling rates.

But savings from having fewer containers to collect and sort, reduced levels of littering and lower charges from sending waste to landfill would create savings that outweigh the loss of revenue, the report by Eunomia Research and Consulting said.

Across the UK, 35 million plastic bottles and 20 million aluminium cans are sold every day.