Expand liquor bottle recycling

Re: Ditch deposits on liquor bottles — Jesse Kline, Sept. 27

The call to repeal Ontario's alcohol container deposit return program is misguided.

Alcohol containers are mainly glass bottles and aluminum cans. Glass cannot be effectively recycled in the municipal blue box: it contaminates other materials and is typically downcycled into road fill. Yet glass bottles are among the most energy-intensive packages made and should be returned to create new bottles, not wasted in low-value applications.

Aluminum cans — one of the most valuable materials in the recycling stream — have languished below a 50 per cent recycling rate in Ontario for more than two decades under the blue box. With global demand at over $2,800 per metric ton (about four cents per can), it is irrational to send such a resource to landfills and incinerators.

The blue box simply does not perform efficiently, particularly in apartment buildings and public spaces.

To make matters worse, the Ontario government recently lowered beverage packaging targets and removed producer responsibility for bins in parks and on streets.

By contrast, deposit return systems (DRS) achieve recovery rates of 85–90+ per cent worldwide, cut producer costs, capture valuable materials and create recycling jobs.

Modern systems can be hybrid, with private businesses competing to provide collection services, as Quebec is now demonstrating.

Globally, the trend is unmistakable. In February 2025, the European Union mandated DRS for all bottles and cans, recognizing curbside systems alone cannot deliver.

At a time of rising energy costs and fierce global competition for resources, Ontario should not discard valuable glass and aluminum.

Beverage packaging is fast-moving, highly consumed away from home, and among the most energy-intensive packages.

Deposit return is the system of the future. Ontario should modernize and expand, not repeal. Clarissa Morawski, CEO Reloop Platform