Updated at 9:05 a.m., Sunday, February 18, 2007
Can, bottle redemption at stores proposed
Advertiser Staff
HONOLULU — To increase recycling rates, some lawmakers want to require supermarkets, department stores and other retailers selling beverages to accept the empty bottles and cans for redemption.
Under current law, retailers within a 2-mile radius of a redemption center are not required to redeem deposit beverage containers.
The bill would eliminate that exemption, except for those stores that subcontract a recycler to have a redemption center within 1,000 feet of their business.
The bill is headed to a vote by the full Senate provided the Energy and Environment Committee recommends its approval Thursday.
Not affected by the bill would be other retailers that are exempt under current law because they sell beverages only through vending machines, have premises of less than 5,000 square feet, have demonstrated financial hardship or meet other criteria established by the state health director.
Committee Chairman Sen. Ron Menor, who authored the bill, said the change will increase recycling by making it easier for consumers to redeem their empty containers.
But Ed Thompson of the Hawaii Food Industry Association said accepting cans at the stores creates sanitation issues, including the risk of insects, mice and rats.
If the bill becomes law, most stores probably would choose to have reverse vending machines, which will require at least 100 square feet of store space, Thompson said.
