Duane Hicks
While local residents have been able to return their empty liquor bottles to The Beer Store for a refund since February, 2007, far too many people continue to drop off their empties at the blue recycling bins on Wright Avenue.
And the town’s manager of Operations and Facilities can’t stand to see them anymore.
“It drives me nuts,” said Doug Brown, adding 30-40 percent of the stockpiled glass at the Public Works yard is beer, wine, and liquor bottles.
Brown noted “it doesn’t make sense” that people throw away money by opting to dump their bottles off instead of turning them in for money at The Beer Store, which is just a few blocks down the street from the Public Works building.
Brown stressed that by dropping off their liquor bottles at the town bins, people not only are wasting their own money, but giving Public Works staff extra work and thus costing taxpayers money.
While the returnable bottles are worth money, paying town staff to sort and return them would be cost-prohibitive.
Brown said non-profit community groups that may be interested in sorting through the glass, collecting the bottles, and then turning them in for money are encouraged to call him at 274-9383.
There are hundreds—if not thousands—of returnable bottles.
It will be first-come, first-serve, Brown stressed, adding once he lets one group in, he doesn’t want to have to let in another.
Since Feb. 5, 2007, Ontarians have been paying a deposit on wine and liquor containers as the province brought into effect a new fee to promote recycling with its “Bag It Back” initiative.
But people can get back that deposit by returning glass bottles, plastic bottles, Tetra Pak containers, bag-in-box, aluminum, and steel containers purchased at the LCBO to The Beer Store.
They get a 20-cent refund for glass bottles, plastic bottles (PET), Tetra Pak containers, and bag-in-box containers greater than 630 mL, and aluminum and steel containers over 1L.
They get 10 cents each for containers less than or equal to 630 mL, and aluminum and steel containers less than or equal to 1L.
There is no deposit collected or refund offered for containers with a volume of 100 mL or less (e.g., 50 mL minis), as well as containers purchased at duty-free stores and from do-it-yourself beer- and wine-making stores.
