Image from Flickr by cocolima

The campaign for a Bottle Bill in West Virginia by Linda Frame of West Virginia’s Citizen Action Group is being backed by the Independant Liberal Arts Community Co-op.

Larry Hammons of ILACC, a group primarily interested in the fight against poverty, is currently drafting an e-mail in support of the campaign to Frame, the Program Manager of the Action Group.

The campaign website states that: “West Virginians use over 1 billion containers each year, the majority of which end up in landfils or along our highways.”

A Bottle Bill would essentially provide incentives for existing recyclers, Solid Waste Authority facilities and new businesses to collect empty beverage containers.

A Bottle Bill will also:

• increase recycling rates and reduce landfill
• reduce litter
• reduce overall burden placed on taxpayers and municipal waste management systems
• save taxpayers money
• reduce costs to farmers for damages to crops and livestock caused by litter
• allow West Virginia to join the other 11 states where Bottle Bills enjoy strong public support
• help West Virginia comply with the West Virginia Recycling Act and it’s goals
• create hundreds of jobs

Change is needed

Hammons has his own ideas about why a Bottle Bill is the right step to take: “Why would a company want to use virgin materials when our land fills are overflowing with re-usable glass and metal containers?

“Because it’s cheaper for the corporations. In reality the consumer is paying to despose of these throw away containers. Every time we buy a Coke we are giving the Coca-Cola corporation profit and then we pay to despose of there bi-product.”

Hammons emphasises the fact that these corporations want to appear to be environmentally friendly but still they leave us to throw their products into the landfills. So why are we not re-using the glass, plastic and melting down the aluminum?

A disposable society

In celebration of the Bill, Hammons said: “Recycling costs money. America has become a disposable society. The average Joe feels like his opinion means nothing, that no-one listens, so he does nothing. That’s exactly what the media and these corporations want Joe to do – nothing! If there isnt a cry for change there will be none.”

You can telephone, email or write to the legislators and Governor Manchin and ask them to support the Bottle Bill. Details can be found on www.wvbottlebill.org/

Alternatively, click on this link to be taken to an online petition.