Post Date: 10 May 2021

Plastic Beverage Containers PRS – Why a Deposit-return System works?

Nearly 5 million PET plastic bottles are discarded every day in our landfills. However, for every 100 plastic bottles, not even one gets recycled. The rest are being disposed of at landfills, the countryside and the oceans.

Three years ago, Secretary for the Environment Wong Kam-sing claimed that he would go for a deposit-return system to drive plastic bottle reduction. However, the Environmental Protection Department proposed another approach which is a rebate system in their public consultation on the plastic beverage bottle PRS this year.

Why we believe a deposit-return system is critical to boosting source reduction and recycling? Let’s dissect the economic implications and feasibility of both systems with speakers having rich international and local experience.