Advocating for the Bottle Bill

Roughly 5.5 billion beverage containers are sold in Maryland every year. Only about a quarter of these are captured for recycling, which means over four billion end up in landfills, incinerators, or--even worse--on roadsides and waterways. It doesn't have to be this way! Beverage container deposit programs, or "bottle bills," are a proven policy for recovering used containers and reducing litter.  For more information about the effectiveness of bottle bills in general and how such a bill would benefit Maryland, click here.

The Lower Eastern Shore Group has been advocating for passage of a bottle bill over several Maryland legislative sessions. We keep getting closer, and we are hopeful that 2027 will be the magic year. Some strategies we have used include lobbying our legislators, presenting information about the Bottle Bill at town/city council meetings, sharing information at public forums such as Farmers Markets and First Fridays, and demonstrating our support in front of conference venues. Click here to read the OC Times article about a presentation to the Berlin Town Council.