History of bottle recycling in the United States facts for kids
The history of bottle recycling in the United States has changed a lot over time. It can be divided into four main periods. First, in the late 1700s and early 1800s, most bottles were reused. People returned them to stores. Later, when bottles were made in huge numbers, many were thrown away. This led to the idea of bottle deposits.
After World War II, things changed again. People started buying more "single-use" containers. These were thrown away after one use, causing a lot of litter. Some states then created "bottle bills" to bring back deposits. The drink industry tried its own recycling programs. Then, they pushed for recycling bins at people's homes. More recently, plastic PET bottles became very popular. The US used to lead in PET recycling. But now, many European countries recycle more.
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Bottles in Early America
In the late 1700s, bottles for drinks like beer and soda were made by hand. They were quite expensive. Because of this, most drinks were enjoyed in places like restaurants. When people bought drinks, they often returned the empty bottles. Or, they brought their own bottles to be filled. This system worked well because stores were usually small and local.
By the early 1800s, people still reused bottles many times. They also used them to store homemade food and drinks. But by the end of the century, machines started making bottles. This meant bottles could be made much faster and cheaper. People began buying bottled drinks to enjoy at home. Bottles were often sold in single-serving sizes.
Many bottles had a message like "This bottle to be washed and returned." Bottles were still valuable. Manufacturers lost money if bottles were not returned. But often, people just threw bottles away. Especially smaller soda bottles ended up broken or in trash piles. By 1910, 20 glass containers were made for every person in the US.
To solve this problem, bottle deposits were introduced. Beer and soda companies first used them in the 1870s. By the 1920s, deposits became common for soda. A deposit (often 2 cents) encouraged people to return bottles. It also helped cover the cost if a bottle was not returned. During the Great Depression and World War II, deposits became very common. They were used for milk, beer, and soda bottles. By 1947, fewer bottles were lost in the US. The deposit system was popular until after World War II. That's when Americans started buying different kinds of containers.
The Rise of Single-Use Bottles
After World War II, the deposit system began to disappear. Single-use containers started to take over. The beer industry was the first to switch. At first, it was hard to put beer in cans. The pressure inside could cause problems. Also, the metal could change the taste of the beer.
In 1935, the Gottfried Krueger Brewing Company successfully sold beer in cans. These 12-ounce cans were smaller and lighter than glass bottles. This made them easier to pack and ship. Soon, bottle makers also started selling "one-way" bottles. These new bottles and cans often said "No Deposit, No Return." By the early 1950s, single-use cans and bottles made up 30% of packaged beer sales.
New technology helped make single-use bottles popular. But changes in how people lived also played a big role. After World War II, more families enjoyed drinks and entertainment at home. The glass and aluminum industries promoted "convenience." Many people started buying drinks to enjoy "on-the-go." Big soda companies like Coca-Cola also helped make single-use bottles common.
Large "self-serve" supermarkets also became popular. These new stores replaced smaller, local shops. The big stores did not want to deal with bottle deposits. It took up too much space and was not very profitable for them. Also, reusing bottles did not fit with the new way of shopping. People wanted quick, easy interactions.
By the 1950s and 1960s, more people worried about the environment. They saw huge numbers of bottles and cans littering highways and beaches. In 1953, the soda industry started the "Keep America Beautiful" campaign. It aimed to teach people how to throw away their single-use containers. This campaign also tried to stop laws that would ban single-use containers. Instead, it focused on educating consumers. In 1971, Oregon became the first US state to pass a "bottle bill." This law brought back bottle deposits of 5 cents.
A side effect of single-use bottles was larger drink sizes. At first, single-use bottles were expensive to make. So, companies made them larger to seem like a better deal. This led to people drinking more soda, which has a lot of sugar. In the 1950s, soda often came in 6-7 ounce containers. A decade later, 12-ounce bottles were often the smallest size available.
Recycling Programs: Private and Government Efforts
By the mid-1960s, the trash problem was clear. President Lyndon Johnson suggested that the government help fund local trash programs. Congress also considered laws to ban single-use containers. By 1976, over a thousand attempts were made to pass laws about packaging. Politicians worried about the cost of collecting and getting rid of bottles and cans.
However, lobbyists from the drink industry mostly stopped these bans. They argued that such laws would hurt sales and cause job losses. Instead, drink and packaging companies offered recycling as a solution. As people became more aware of the trash problem, companies like Coca-Cola and Pepsi promoted recycling. They used campaigns like "Keep America Beautiful" in the early 1970s. But public support for these private recycling efforts soon faded. Many recycling centers closed because they couldn't make enough money.
The recycling programs of the 1970s also didn't collect many containers. For example, in 1972, only 912 million of 36 billion glass containers were recycled. Aluminum recycling wasn't much better.
To make recycling work better, the government started funding local recycling programs. Companies like Coca-Cola spoke to Congress. They supported laws like the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). This Act was passed in 1967. It gave more federal support for local recycling efforts.
By the late 1970s, more people worried about landfills filling up. Several states followed Oregon's lead and passed deposit laws. But the drink industry wanted to set up curbside recycling programs. They did not want to be responsible for the containers they produced. To convince lawmakers, lobbyists argued that recycling would not cost jobs. They said it would be paid for by taxes. Curbside recycling programs became more common. By 1992, there were over 4,000 such programs in the US. However, these programs were not profitable. They had to be paid for with taxpayer money.
The Story of PET Bottle Recycling
The use of PET plastic for soda bottles was first patented in 1973. An American inventor named Nathaniel Wyeth created it. Soon, soda companies began using PET for their drinks. Over the last 20 years, PET bottles have become the most common way to package drinks. They have replaced glass and metal. Water and soda are especially packaged in PET bottles.
PET is better than glass or metal cans in many ways. It is very lightweight and hard to break. Also, PET is clear and keeps moisture and oxygen out. Because of these qualities, PET has replaced glass bottles and metal cans. PET bottles are now used for energy drinks, beer, wine, and juice. The arrival of PET bottles was the final step away from reusable bottles. It led to almost all bottles being "one-way" and single-use.
Before PET bottles were recycled into new bottles, they were used for other things. For example, they became paintbrush bristles or polyester fibers. Today, many companies, like Patagonia, make clothes from old PET bottles. At first, it was hard to recycle used PET bottles into new ones. People didn't know enough about how PET might get dirty during its first use or when it was collected. Contamination can happen if drinks soak into the plastic. Or, if bottles are reused to store unsafe liquids like cleaners. But as more PET bottles were made, recycling them into new bottles became more common.
PET recycling companies shred plastic bottles into small pieces called flakes. Then they wash them. After that, they sell the flakes or turn them into pellets. These are used to make new soda bottles or polyester fiber. For bottle-to-bottle recycling, the plastic must be made very clean. This was first done in the US in 1991. These "super-clean recycling processes" make recycled PET flakes as clean as new plastic. This means they can be safely used for new drink containers.
Around 1990, the US collected more PET bottles than any other country. But since then, many European countries have started collecting more PET than the US. In 2009, 655,000 tons of used PET bottles were collected in the US. About 55% of these bottles were sent to other countries, like China. It is often cheaper, especially for cities on the West Coast, to send their plastic to China. As of 2009, 28% of PET bottles in the US were collected for recycling. There are two main ways bottles are collected: curbside collection and the deposit system. In 2009, curbside collection gathered 26% of bottles. The deposit system collected 17%. Today, packaging still makes up most of the municipal waste in the US.
