#Kingston, April 14, 2019 – Jamaica – Chairman of the Bureau of Standards Jamaica (BSJ), Senator Matthew Samuda, says plans are on track for the launch of the deposit refund scheme for plastic bottles this year.
The scheme, which will provide a cash refund to
consumers who return their plastic bottles, is intended to reduce littering and
encourage recycling. It will be
implemented by Recycling Partners Jamaica Limited.
Depositors will be paid a minimum of $1 for each
polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or high-density polyethylene (HDPE) bottle
delivered to Recycling Partners depots across the island.
“We’re
well on the way because money is being put aside… by the private-sector
entities, who have put a $1 cess on themselves for each plastic bottle to raise
$850 million this year,” Senator Samuda noted.
The
money will go towards the collection of the bottles, including purchasing
trucks. Senator Samuda, who was
addressing a meeting on Thursday (April 11), at the BSJ’s offices along
Winchester Avenue, St. Andrew, explained that the idea to establish a value for
each plastic bottle, as opposed to imposing a fee based on weight, was because PET
bottles tend to have little or no weight.
He
said that as the programme evolves, it is expected that the private sector will
provide details to the public about the process for refunds of deposits and
drop-off points.
Senator
Samuda said that the deposit refund scheme will have many benefits. “Firstly,
it would allow for the creation of a green industry based entirely on the
notion of waste as a resource. The collected and recycled bottles can be used
to make a number of items, including material for carpets and synthetic fibres
and other materials,” he noted.
Contact:
Ainsworth Morris
Release:
JIS