Would you pay for parking by recycling plastic bottles?

[ys123]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-en...c-bottles-car-parking-scheme-is-well-received

Leeds plastic bottles car parking scheme is 'well received'
Hundreds of plastic bottles have been handed in to a Leeds car park which is allowing them to be used toward the cost of parking.

The initiative allows drivers to pay for parking by trading in empty bottles for tokens. Each bottle, which has to be at least 500ml, is worth 20p and motorists can bring as many as they like.

Operator CitiPark said the bottles would be "recycled into usable items such as shirts, toys and even chairs".

It is trialling the scheme at its car park at the Merrion Centre during October and says it has been "well received" by customers.

I very much like the idea, but how is the parking company making money from the bottles?

 

[headshot119]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-en...c-bottles-car-parking-scheme-is-well-received



I very much like the idea, but how is the parking company making money from the bottles?

Most likely selling them onto a recycling company.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I'd quite happily see a German style deposit bottle scheme (including moving to heavier, thicker grade reusable bottles rather than melting down each time) but I don't think I'd tie it into anything else.

 

[Groningen]

I have said this before. In Germany on the stations and trains (and everywhere, but often i only see the station) you see the whole day some people with bags to collect bottles.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I have said this before. In Germany on the stations and trains (and everywhere, but often i only see the station) you see the whole day some people with bags to collect bottles.

It is actually quite a good way for homeless people to obtain a little money by going round picking them up and trading them in.

 

[edwin_m]

But how does the environmental benefit of recycling more bottles compare with the environmental cost of more people using cars because they get "free" parking?

 

[Groningen]

If people need to life from collecting deposit on bottles 9or/and cans) than something is wrong. But for some returning empty stuff a hindrance if they have to keep it with them for the rest of the day.

 

[Bletchleyite]

If people need to life from collecting deposit on bottles 9or/and cans) than something is wrong. But for some returning empty stuff a hindrance if they have to keep it with them for the rest of the day.

If people are on the streets something is wrong. But it does help just a little with that imperfect situation.

 

[Puffing Devil]

But how does the environmental benefit of recycling more bottles compare with the environmental cost of more people using cars because they get "free" parking?

I'm hoping this would encourage more recycling as people paid "bottle" instead of "cash", rather than making a special trip.

 

[ys123]

I'm hoping this would encourage more recycling as people paid "bottle" instead of "cash", rather than making a special trip.

It will be a bit of both. Some people who would anyway be driving and parking will recycle bottles and some people who wouldn't have driven due to parking fees will now drive as it's "free".

 

[DarloRich]

Most likely selling them onto a recycling company.

exactly - must be worth their while. I wonder what they are selling the load on for.

 

[Bald Rick]

exactly - must be worth their while. I wonder what they are selling the load on for.

Well, clear PET bottles for recycling will go for about £150/tonne. A 2 litre PET bottle weighs about 40g, so that will be 0.6p per bottle. Coloured PET bottles go for about 20% of that. HDPE (the stuff most supermarket milk comes in) goes for about twice the price of Clear PET.

 

[alxndr]

I can't see myself saving up bottles to pay for parking as I don't go through a huge amount and I rarely drive anyway, especially not to pay and display carparks. If I happened to have a drink on me I'd use it but wouldn't hoard them for parking purposes.

I'd simply much rather the council be consistent about what they'll collect so I knew whether to bother putting them in the recycling or not.