Cost of Recycling Set to Fall to Packaging Manufacturers
Wednesday, December 19, 2018 - 09:51:05
The companies which are responsible for producing the various types of packaging used to house consumer goods of all types will be strong-armed into covering the expenses associated with recycling this waste, so long as the government’s latest policy is put into practice.
As well as impacting the producers of the packaging, retailers will also be hit with fees and charged with the responsibility of collecting the vast amounts of material which is discarded after products have been purchased.
This scheme will see different fees levelled against different types of packaging, with easily recyclable options getting a break while the worst offenders are hit with higher costs.
Ideally, this will convince producers and retailers alike to think more carefully about not only the materials which are used in packaging products but also the way that packaging is designed and the amount of packaging which is used in the first place.
At the moment the vast majority of recycling costs are effectively shouldered by taxpayers, since local councils are in charge of recycling schemes to which businesses make a measly 10 per cent contribution, according to the Guardian. This should change as long as the government can make producers pay more without also passing this expense on to their customers.
Another aspect of the updated waste strategy aims specifically to deal with plastic waste and put forward the idea of banning packaging which uses this non-degradable material outright. Furthermore, a project where bottles and cans used for beverages are purchased with a deposit and returned for a repayment is also up for consideration.
It will be interesting to see whether politicians can free consumers from the burden of paying for recycling packaging, but as many of the parts of this strategy are not set in stone, a lot more work needs to be done to bring it to fruition.
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