The Bottle Bill is Vermont’s most successful recycling program, achieving more than double the recycling rate of any other program in the state. Over the past 40 years, the number of containers that have been recycled through the Bottle Bill they would fill the Empire State Building more than 3 times over.
VPIRG will be fighting hard during the upcoming legislative session to expand the Bottle Bill to include all types of beverage containers, not just beer and soda. This will help Vermont recycle an additional 96.7 million bottles and cans each year, reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to keeping 1,283 cars off the road each year, and create local jobs. However, we know that the beverage industry will be flying in their lobbyists to try and repeal the Bottle Bill, and drown out the voices of everyday Vermonters in the process. This is why we need your help. The grassroots support you can provide gives us the strength and political clout to make sure Vermonters, not beverage industry lobbyists, are the ones being heard in the State House.
Below you will find two powerful resources you can use to show your elected officials that expanding the Bottle Bill is the right thing to do. The first is a toolkit for getting a town meeting resolution passed. Town meeting resolutions have come to be respected indicators of public opinion in the eyes of Vermont decision-makers, as displayed by the recent sweep of Citizen’s United resolutions and subsequent state legislation. The second tool is a “how-to” guide for writing a letter to the editor for your local paper. The editorial section is a widely read section of the newspaper, and submitting a letter in support of expanding the Bottle Bill is a quick and effective way to reach a lot of people.
If you do decide to take action, please let us know, and feel free to email taylor@vpirg.org if you have any questions!
Click here to view VPIRG’s Bigger Better Bottle Bill Town Meeting Resolution Toolkit
Click here to view VPIRG’s Bigger Better Bottle Bill Letter to the Editor Toolkit