On Thursday, April 24, 2025, the Climate Team of the LWVDC held a Zoom webinar to educate the public about a proposed Bottle Bill for a District-wide on plastic, aluminum and glass beverage containers. Team member Colleen Daly introduced two experts on the issue who spoke about the logistics of the recycling effort and its potential for mitigating the impact of trash and waste in our neighborhoods and waterways.
Susan Schorr, the co-lead for the Single-Use Plastics Subcommittee of the Sierra Club DC and leader of the 3RC (Return, Reuse, Recycle Coalition) for DC, (aka the Bottle Bill), explained how the Bill would support and encourage local waste reduction in the District.
● Each bottle or can has a 10-cent deposit return.
● Beverage industry pays fees and establishes protocols for the program.
● Small businesses, including breweries and distilleries, are exempted from fees.
● Performance targets are set at 75% rate of return on containers for the first year and 85% by 2028.
● Unclaimed deposit money funds lead filters for use in homes with lead pipes, notably Wards 7 & 8.
● Anacostia area is particularly impacted by trash and plastic single use bottles.
● 11 council members co-introduced the initiative.
● Bill currently awaits a hearing in the Business and Economic Development Committee.
Kirstie Pecci founder of Just Zero, a MA-based organization dedicated to reducing landfill waste in her Sturbridge, MA community shared insights from the 10 other states that have Bottle Bills.
● Recycling facilities are frequently overwhelmed by the volume of waste they stream daily, often recycling less than a return program.
● Waste disposal is an expensive part of local government budgets; single-use recycling with return-for-deposit encourages beverage companies to reuse materials and reduces trash burden on communities.
● A 20% reduction in landfill waste can be achieved in first few years of the return-for-deposit effort, thus reducing budget costs of recycling.
● Bottle bills reduce the need for more “virgin plastic” production.
● Bottle bills encourage recycling efforts in large office and apartment buildings which traditionally are not part of community recycling.
In a lively discussion during the question-and-answer period, an ANC member challenged the efficacy of the return-for-deposit model. While no one program can eliminate waste entirely, a combination of community recycling and return-for-deposit appears to be effective in reducing plastic waste in communities that support this effort as evidenced by the several states who have the system in place. Some of these states are considering raising their current 5-cent deposit to the 10-cent level that is being proposed by the District bill to incentivize more community participation.
In the closing remarks, a participant raised concerns about the marked increase in levels of microplastics in human organs, including the brain, discovered by researchers at two major universities studying the potential impact on human health and well-being.
Prior to the Bottle Bill discussion, Paula Hirschoff team leader for Project Pipes, gave an update on Project Pipes, the Washington Gas Company’s pipe replacement project in the District. Washington Gas is planning a 12% rate hike to offset costs of repiping the District. Opponents claim that the company ignores its mandated repair of leaking gas lines in favor of the expensive and environmentally damaging total replacement. Project Pipes opponents are encouraging a switch to electric to reduce methane in the atmosphere and provide a safer, more sustainable alternative to methane gas.