UK plans plastic bottle charge to tackle pollution | Inquirer Technology

UK plans plastic bottle charge to tackle pollution

/ 08:40 AM March 28, 2018

Plastic bottles used as beverage container.

Britain announced on Wednesday plans for consumers to pay a deposit on plastic bottles as part of a broader push to address environment pollution.

The government will introduce a charge on plastic, glass, and metal single use drinks containers sold in England, the environment ministry said.

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The move is aimed at cutting the amount of waste produced in Britain – including an estimated 13 billion plastic drinks bottles annually.

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“It is absolutely vital we act now to tackle this threat and curb the millions of plastic bottles a day that go un-recycled,” said environment minister Michael Gove.

“We want to take action on plastic bottles to help clean up our oceans,” he added.

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The deposit scheme to be introduced in Britain will be opened for consultation to determine how it will work.

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The environment ministry pointed to similar schemes in Denmark, Sweden, and Germany, where a charge of up to 22 pence (25 euro cents) is refunded once the empty bottle is deposited.

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The measure follows the 2015 introduction of a 5-pence charge for carrier bags in most shops, which the government has said has cut the number of plastic bags by 9 billion.

Britain is also due to put plastics pollution on the agenda at next month’s Commonwealth summit, attended by more than 50 leaders, the prime minister’s spokesman said.                        /kga

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TOPICS: Britain, Environment, plastic, Pollution
TAGS: Britain, Environment, plastic, Pollution

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