CONNECTICUT, USA — More people are returning their bottles in Connecticut.
New data shows since the state doubled the deposit, the redemption rate has increased.
“Believe it or not, that small incentive is incredibly powerful,” said Susan Collins, president of the Container Recycling Institute.
With the new year, came a new price for cans and bottles in Connecticut. Starting January 1, 2024, the state’s bottle deposit jumped from 5 to 10 cents.
"People may be still becoming aware that the increase happened as of Jan. 1, and as they learn, they say, ‘Ok, instead of putting my containers in the curbside recycling bin, I’m going to make the effort to go redeem them now,’” explained Chris Nelson, a supervising environmental analyst for the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection.
The numbers seem to reflect that.
Last year, the redemption rate for quarter 1 was 43.7%. The rate for the first three months of this year is nearly 10 percent more, at 53.5%.
“This was a pretty sizeable jump from last year to this year,” Nelson said.
This is up only slightly — about 3% — from the final quarter of 2023, right before the deposit doubled.
Experts say that’s to be expected though, as the full impact of this increase could take time.
“The return rates in the programs, especially the ones that have a dime deposit range, are around 80%,” said Collins. “Those are the kinds of changes that we expect to occur, but they don't happen overnight. It takes a while. I mean, we always say give it like at least a full two years for everybody to really catch on for all the consumers to be aware of the new value.”
This deposit increase isn’t the only recent change.
“As of Jan. 1, 2023, the universe of covered sources expanded, brought in things like juices, sports drinks, some beverages that were never covered before,” Nelson added.
“Consumers are getting used to both of those things,” continued Collins. “So over the course of the next few years, we expect to see the rate gradually and gradually increase to where it's, you know, quite a bit higher redemption rate than what we're seeing right now.”
Connecticut is one of only 10 states with a “bottle bill” or container redemption program.
Neighboring states Massachusetts, New York, Vermont and Maine also have programs, but that list could be expanding. Collins says in just the last year, 14 other states looked at introducing bottle bills, including New Hampshire and Rhode Island.
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Emma Wulfhorst is a political reporter for FOX61 News. She can be reached at ewulfhorst@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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