Light Metals 2014 pp 913-918 | Cite as
The viability of a “Voluntary Refund-Deposit System” for Aluminum can Recycling in the U.S.
Abstract
The concept of a voluntary deposit system is developed and modeled in this paper in comparison to the current state of a voluntary non-deposit (R1) and mandatory refund-deposit (R2) hybrid system in the U.S. The R3 model is found to be optimal in comparison through an increase in the recycling rate, a reduction in operating costs, and the creation of a larger surplus to be used to pay for an IT-based tracking system and research grants to enable future innovations in the collection and processing of recyclables. In the R3 model, consumers are only burdened if they choose to not recycle, or they wish to have the convenience of curbside pick-up.
Keywords
Voluntary Refund-Deposit System Aluminum Used Beverage Containers (UBC) InnovationPreview
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