From Friday, a new ‘deposit and refund’ system will come into effect on plastic bottles and cans sold in major supermarkets.
The bottles and cans, marked clearly with the ‘Volta’ (Return) symbol, will start costing 10 cents more – which will be refunded via special machines and ‘kiosks’ when they are returned.
The only proviso in receiving the refund is that the bottle/can is ‘undamaged’, has its bar code still clearly visible, and sports the ‘Volta’ symbol.
According to reports, 2,500 machines are being sited outside hypermarkets and supermarkets, while 48 kiosks will be established to receive bottles from cafés/bars and similar.
The objective is to boost recycling in Portugal, albeit for now glass bottles are not part of the scheme.
The ‘transition period’ for this new initiative will run until August 9.
When people ‘return’ their clearly marked plastic bottles or cans, they will receive a voucher, which can be converted into money, a discount at the hyper/supermarket, a donation, even what Correio da Manhã terms as “a future digital solution” (whatever that turns out to be).
The validity of vouchers is one year, and no one will be obliged to spend the money at the retail outlet where they received it.
The Volta machines are very specific: they will only accept plastic bottles or cans with the Volta symbol. They take only one item at a time, and crush it there and then. The person delivering the item into the machine is then presented with various options for his/her refund.
As SIC Notícias has explained, this derivative of the old system that operated through the 1960s to 1990s “seeks to encourage the circular economy. It is a structural reform that, according to the minister of energy and environment, will help increase the re-use of plastic, currently at a level of 51%. The government hopes this new system helps Portugal reach 90% of selective bottle recycling by 2029”.
Source: Correio da Manhã/SIC Notícias
