Should I Be Pissed Off Someone Is Stealing Our Recycling?

[DMark]

Let me explain:
In Las Vegas, they give you crates and you put your recycling (plastic, cans, paper and glass) out every other week, and they pick them up in a special recycling truck.

So, lately, someone is driving down our street and taking the plastic bottles and cans in the middle of the night, before the "official" truck arrives in the morning from the Silver State Disposal (our garbage and recycling company).

It is pretty easy to figure out why. Here in Las Vegas (and all of Nevada), there is no surcharge on plastic or cans - but in neighboring California, I believe it is 5 cents for each two liter plastic bottle, and a few cents for each can. Someone is obviously taking the bottles and cans from here, driving over to California and turning them in for money. BTW, they never touch the paper or glass - no profit in that in California.

I happened to see the recycling truck last week and spoke briefly with the driver and he said, "Yes, this is happening more and more throughout Las Vegas." and he also agreed it was most likely someone taking it all to California for cash refund.

So - the recycling is getting recycled (of that I am pretty certain), so should I be pissed that someone is taking them and making a profit off it it, or should I just say, "who cares, as long as it is not thrown into a garbage dump!"

[Robot Arm]

I can think of two reasons it's a bad idea to let this continue.

In theory, the five cents you get for a can in California is a return of the five cent deposit you gave when you bought the full can. If people return more cans than are sold, the system runs at a deficit. If they cancel their recycling program, that's more cans to the landfills.

The curbside recycling in Vegas probably takes a hit, too. I suspect that program was budgeted with the expectation that the value of the material collected would help cover the costs. If they're collecting less than expected, Las Vegas might cut back on their curbside pickup.

However, I can't think of a whole lot that you can do about it. Ideally, there would be some way to identify sold-in-California cans so only they could be returned there. Or the Vegas police could start busting the people who are taking the cans. (I'm not exactly sure what to charge them with, though.)

[AboutAsWeirdAsYouCanGet]

You know.....I really wish that some of the street/homeless canners out there would do what I do. Namely, when they take empties from recyling bins, they put something back. It isn';t that hard to find an empty (non rededemible) plastic bottle on the street!

[guizot]

Originally Posted by DMark

It is pretty easy to figure out why. Here in Las Vegas (and all of Nevada), there is no surcharge on plastic or cans - but in neighboring California, I believe it is 5 cents for each two liter plastic bottle, and a few cents for each can. Someone is obviously taking the bottles and cans from here, driving over to California and turning them in for money.

Why would they bother to go all the way over to California? Aren't there any recyclers in Nevada who'll pay for the materials?

Originally Posted by Robot Arm

In theory, the five cents you get for a can in California is a return of the five cent deposit you gave when you bought the full can. If people return more cans than are sold, the system runs at a deficit. If they cancel their recycling program, that's more cans to the landfills.

Is that really the way California's system is supposed to work?

I always thought the 5 cents was a tax you pay for throwing things in the landfill which otherwise could be recycled, to harm the environment less. If you can find a government recycling place that will pay you five cents for your can, great. But usually you can't, so you sell your can to a private recycling place that pays you less, by the weight. They, in turn, acquire salable materials.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought most cities don't run their recycling programs really to fund themselves financially. Some come close, but most are just barely breaking even.

And in the case of Las Vegas, if someone comes along and takes recyclables from your trash, they are taking only certain materials, and I imagine that they recoop some of the expense. And the city still is keeping the other materials from simply being buried or burnt.

[Zoe]

I saw a new item on television about Mexican immigrants, a man and his wife, who were saving every penny they could to put their children through college. Finding items with refunds was one of the things they did together at night dressed in coveralls.

If I remember correctly, one son was through medical or law school and would be helping the next one in line. Feel free to correct me on the details.

Individual families willing to work that hard need those pennies even more than the states do, in my opinion. Being totally cut off from your state might make a difference in their lives -- maybe in what they can feed their children. If people are that desperate, can't you just look the other way? Now if there is a big crisis in bottles not being returned to the recycling plant, then I would reconsider.

[sandra_nz]

Whilst I see the sense in Robot Arm's arguments, I think if it's just one or two people doing this, then it's not going to be sufficient to impact on state/federal budgets and that kind of thing.

I think that the sort of person who would go to the trouble of doing this is the sort of person who is living on a very low income where every cent helps. So I'd take the, 'Hey, if they're willing to go to that trouble to earn a few dollars, good on them' attitude.

[Robot Arm]

Originally Posted by guizot

Why would they bother to go all the way over to California? Aren't there any recyclers in Nevada who'll pay for the materials?


Is that really the way California's system is supposed to work?

I always thought the 5 cents was a tax you pay for throwing things in the landfill which otherwise could be recycled, to harm the environment less. If you can find a government recycling place that will pay you five cents for your can, great. But usually you can't, so you sell your can to a private recycling place that pays you less, by the weight. They, in turn, acquire salable materials.

Massachusetts (where I live) has a five-cent deposit on cans, so I assume California is similar.

Here's how it works where I live. When I go to the grocery store and buy a six-pack of soda, it rings up the price of the soda, plus 30 cents as a deposit on the cans. Near the front door of the store is a room with machines like this. Once I drink all the soda, I bring the empty cans back to the store and feed them into the machine. Each can is scanned and either accepted or rejected. When I'm done, it prints a ticket that I can take to one of the cashiers and get back 5 cents for each can. In theory, I'm just getting back the deposit; but there's no way to know what store a particular can of Coke came from, so I think there must be a clearing house of some kind. And for every can that doesn't get returned, someone (probably the state) gets to keep that nickel.

There's some fraud protection in the system. The machines scan the objects that are fed into them to make sure they're valid cans. Among other things, it scans for the bar code. I think a store only has to pay out on things that they actually sell, so if you've got a can of Guatemalan ginger ale you bought at Whole Foods, you'll have to take it back there to get your nickel back. The machine crushes each can, so a store employee can't feed one can through a thousand times and scam the system.

I'm all for recycling, but the way they do it here is a huge hassle. The deposit is supposed to be an incentive, but I've never heard if it works any better than states where people can just leave their recycling at the curb. The simple solution would be to use a different bar code on cans sold in states that require a deposit.

Yeah, one or two people are probably not going to bring the recycling industry to its knees. My first post was just trying to figure out who's getting the short end of the stick. Solving it may be more trouble than it's worth. Although, ask the grocery store managers on the California side of the border if they like paying out more than they bring in in deposits.

[Future Londonite]

Originally Posted by Robot Arm

Massachusetts (where I live) has a five-cent deposit on cans, so I assume California is similar.

I'm all for recycling, but the way they do it here is a huge hassle. The deposit is supposed to be an incentive, but I've never heard if it works any better than states where people can just leave their recycling at the curb. The simple solution would be to use a different bar code on cans sold in states that require a deposit.

In Germany and the Netherlands the deposit is 25(euro)cents I believe.....so it's worthwhile the hassle but I give to you that for a nickel a can/bottle it's really not worth it

[Flymaster]

Originally Posted by Robot Arm

Massachusetts (where I live) has a five-cent deposit on cans, so I assume California is similar....

Although, ask the grocery store managers on the California side of the border if they like paying out more than they bring in in deposits.

I'm sure they don't pay out in California. In fact, I'm almost certain of it. Note the side of your soda can that you bought in Massachusetts: It says DE-IA-MA-CT-NY-HI-OR-5c MI-10c CA - CASH REFUND.

Now go to Nevada and purchase a can of soda. Or, save yourself some time and just take a drive up to NH. Notice that it does NOT have any refund information on the can. Drive to your local Massachusetts Stop and Shop location, and try to return that can for a deposit refund: It'll get rejected by the scanner, because it's not a deposit can.

Nobody is stealing recycling in NV and successfully taking it to California for a deposit. They're selling it to a scrap metal dealer.

The only place that such a scam works would be to pull the Seinfeld, taking cans from one deposit state and driving them to Michigan for the 10c refund.

[Zsofia]

We don't have any nearby states with a better deal on your recyclables, so I have no problem whatsoever with the creepy guy with the shopping cart. (I believe he is also Limping Drunk who Yells at Dogs Down the Street, but it's dark when he does it so I'm not sure.) Doesn't do me any harm, I don't think the city's hurting from the actions of a couple can thieves, and at least he's doing something.

[Harmonious Discord]

What are the chances that they are filling your brand name bottles with generic product and selling it to people?

[Tapioca Dextrin]

I can't speak for other locales, but in Austin, recycling is a business, heavily regulated by the City. We put out our cans, glass, plastic, paper, what have you and the truck comes along and recycles everything. The recyclers make a healthy profit on cans, probably break even on the paper and glass and lose money on the plastic.

The recyclers are required by the city to recycle the plastic, but that's OK for them as the profits from the cans more than make up for it. If someone starts stealing cans on a regular basis, then the equation changes. Recycling stops being a profitable business.

That leaves the City with two options. Either stop recycling, or using my tax dollars to pay for recycling. I'd rather keep the business tycoons and hippy liberals happy and not have folks steal my stuff.

[dragonlady]

I live and recycle in CA.
I have never seen a can-scanning machine. We take out cans to a recycler, usually behind most every large grocery store and get paid by weight. I've never seen them check the cans for the "cash refund" notation, although I've seen the notation. I'm betting you COULD get the refund from NV cans.
YMMV

[Tim R. Mortiss]

This is the only way that I recycle. I toss everything in the regular trash. Anything of value, the alley bums will resurrect and take somewhere for cash, which they in turn recycle into booze, and eventually another empty bottle. It's the circle of life.

Regarding stolen recycling in Las Vegas, why should you begrudge somebody making a profit, if that profit does not come out of your (or your state's) pocket? Just be glad your land-fill volume is going down.......TRM

[ElvisL1ves]

Originally Posted by dragonlady

I'm betting you COULD get the refund from NV cans.

Don't make that bet. Deposit cans have different bar codes than nondeposit ones.

[voguevixen]

Originally Posted by dragonlady

I live and recycle in CA.
I have never seen a can-scanning machine.

That's how I had to recycle in San Francisco when I lived there and it was a major hassle because I had to wait in line with the shopping cart bums and families of professional can collectors who would put one member in each line until one would get to the front and then they'd all start passing their bags to each other. When one machine would run out of money they'd pass their bags to the next one to get to the front of a line. You could literally be in line for 2 hours to cash in $3 worth of crappy soda cans (and by then the machine would only have pennies left in it.)

Now that I live in the suburbs I just take them to a recycler for cash by weight (even though we have curbside recycling.) Why yes! If you don't want the bums stealing them you can cash them in yourself!

[Harriet the Spry]

Yes, you should care. As far as those cans/bottles going into a landfill, at this point they weren't going there in any case. There was really no more chance of them winding up in a landfill once you had sorted and put them out at the curb and paid taxes to support home pickup than there was of actual nickels winding up in a landfill. You should be glad that both states have wised up to the fact that we should recycle, and I'm not saying you should stay up nights worrying about it, but the person who is taking them is appropriating resources that do not belong to them, to the detriment of others.

[Red Skeezix]

Continuing the Can Machine hijack: The can machines are a pain in the ass. I take my cans back to a beverage wholesaler who is happy to take any cans that are pre-counted. The longest part of bottle/can return is the time it takes to carry them inside.

[The Devil's Grandmother]

Of course you are allowed to be upset. Either they are stealing from you; or they are stealing from your trash company (which is going to have to up your costs when they don't make the expected amount of money from recycling).
However, if you can bring yourself to not care about it, or to think of it as charity to those who are taking your cans, you are also allowed to not be upset.

[ZenBeam]

Originally Posted by ElvisL1ves

Don't make that bet. Deposit cans have different bar codes than nondeposit ones.

Jeez, did you read her post?

[ElvisL1ves]

The one where she said she'd never seen a can machine but could "bet" on how they worked anyway? That one?

Your point, if any?

[robardin]

Originally Posted by Tim R. Mortiss

This is the only way that I recycle. I toss everything in the regular trash. Anything of value, the alley bums will resurrect and take somewhere for cash, which they in turn recycle into booze, and eventually another empty bottle. It's the circle of life.

Exactly! Why would you be upset that someone is taking stuff from your trash (which is what your garbage cans with recyclables still are)... and getting something useful out of it? That's what recycling is, by definition!

Whatever is on the curb as "garbage" is public domain for scavenging. If you are upset that someone is profiting from your garbage (such as getting some kind of deposit or payment for them), then don't throw it out. If it's not worth your bother, but it is worth someone else's, that's called a niche.

Very often in NYC, in fact, people leave relatively good condition furniture and other stuff on the curb on the assumption that someone will snag it who could use it. I myself have scavenged an office chair and a bookcase this way in my life (while a student) with no qualms, and have likewise left a dissassembled IKEA computer desk/hutch and a halogen lamp labeled "WORKING" that would not fit in my new apartment on the curb for urban scavengers to take (they were gone by morning). A beautiful thing if you ask me.

[Skald the Rhymer]

Robot Arm has already explained why this is a bad idea. Therefore I will give my recommendation for solving the problem. Like most of my recommendations, it involves a sharpened battle-axe and the removal of the offenders' limbs.

[Harriet the Spry]

Originally Posted by robardin

Exactly! Why would you be upset that someone is taking stuff from your trash (which is what your garbage cans with recyclables still are)... and getting something useful out of it? That's what recycling is, by definition!

Whatever is on the curb as "garbage" is public domain for scavenging. If you are upset that someone is profiting from your garbage (such as getting some kind of deposit or payment for them), then don't throw it out. If it's not worth your bother, but it is worth someone else's, that's called a niche.

But in this case DMark has left his cans and bottles at the curb in exchange for the service of someone picking up all of his recycleables (including those that do not have cash value) and recycling them. If the company that does the pickup doesn't receive the expected value in scrap, they will have to charge more for pickup, either in terms of fees or taxes.

[ZenBeam]

Originally Posted by ElvisL1ves

The one where she said she'd never seen a can machine but could "bet" on how they worked anyway? That one?

Your point, if any?

She wasn't describing a can machine at all. She described how she recycles cans in California where they are simply weighed, without the cans ever going through a barcode scanner, or anyone even checking for the "CA refund value" notation. Doesn't matter if the barcodes are different, because they are never read.

[PunditLisa]

I wouldn't give it a second thought. If they were rummaging through my trash, I might be concerned that they were trying to steal my identity. But a recycling bin? Nope.

[sugar and spice]

I wouldn't worry about the state of California, as mentioned the cans are marked and it's easy enough to verify the can was bought in CA if you want to bother. I was in a similar situation when I lived in NYC, NJ cans do not have a deposit and yes, the refund machines at the supermarket would spit them right back out. I wouldn't even bother sorting before I went to the store, I'd just bring them all down and see what the machine ate.

As for lost revenue for the town/recycling company, I get why that's a problem but I'm not so quick to write off the trash-picker as a thieving asshole. This thread alone shows that a lot of people think that trash-picking is perfectly acceptable/another form of recycling. I guess my next question would be if the town does anything to discourage the behavior, or if it's just something that's quietly overlooked.

[sugar and spice]

related link for San Francisco:

Caught in the cross fire are residents. Reports about noise, litter and trespassing have risen so dramatically in the past couple of years that a state lawmaker has written a bill that would make it illegal for recycling centers and salvage yards to buy goods totaling $50 or more without asking for identification and paying by check.

"Ten years ago, you'd see homeless people or a little old grandma going through the garbage and putting cans into a bag to get a couple dollars," said San Francisco Assemblywoman Fiona Ma, who introduced the recycling theft bill. "But now it's more organized, no one is enforcing (theft laws), and it's a way to generate cash."
...

Recycling theft is illegal. As soon as customers put their beer bottles and soda cans in the recycling bin of the city-authorized firm and take it to the curb, those recyclables becomes the waste company's property. In San Francisco, fines for stealing recyclables run from $20 to $500 and can result in up to six months' imprisonment. In Union City, the fines start at $100.

It goes far beyond California. New York City approved legislation that increases the penalty for unlawfully removing or transporting recyclables from $100 to $2,000 for first-time offenders and $5,000 for repeat offenders. The city can also impound vehicles involved in the theft and can arrest those who receive stolen recyclables.

[Magiver]

Originally Posted by robardin

Exactly! Why would you be upset that someone is taking stuff from your trash (which is what your garbage cans with recyclables still are)... and getting something useful out of it? That's what recycling is, by definition!

Because they leave a pile of garbage in my alley in the process and I'm tired of cleaning it up. In addition to this they make a tremendous amount of noise which starts a chain reaction of barking dogs. Therefore, I put my recycling out in the morning (along with my trash) just before the truck arrives.

However, I do take advantage of alley vultures by leaving large scrap metal out during the day. I don't have to call the city for a separate pick it up and they get the money for their efforts.

[Oakminster]

I vote no reason for you to care. You want the stuff to be taken away, and the stuff is being taken away. Who takes it, and who they sell it to, does not affect the end result from your point of view.

[hajario]

Originally Posted by Oakminster

I vote no reason for you to care. You want the stuff to be taken away, and the stuff is being taken away. Who takes it, and who they sell it to, does not affect the end result from your point of view.

Yes it does as many posters have already pointed out. My garbage disposal company makes a profit on the cans that they take which results in a lower price overall (recycling + regular trash + green waste) for disposal service. Few cans = higher costs for them = eventually higher monthly bills for me. In addition, many of the scavengers leave a mess and make noise in the middle of the night.

[justrob]

Originally Posted by sugar and spice

I wouldn't worry about the state of California, as mentioned the cans are marked and it's easy enough to verify the can was bought in CA if you want to bother. I was in a similar situation when I lived in NYC, NJ cans do not have a deposit and yes, the refund machines at the supermarket would spit them right back out. .

Not picking on you, yours was just the last post.

I live in Wisconsin and we don't have deposits for cans here. Looking at the empties in the trashcan I see that 3 cans have markings for VT-ME-NY-IA-MA-CT 5c. One has ME VT MA NY HI IA OR CT 5c but also CA CRV MI 10c.

I could conceivably take these cans to IA or MI pretty easily and cash in for the deposit which is more than the recycleable value here in WI.

[gigi]

Originally Posted by PunditLisa

I wouldn't give it a second thought. If they were rummaging through my trash, I might be concerned that they were trying to steal my identity. But a recycling bin? Nope.

But you left your DNA on those bottles!!??!?!

[Tim R. Mortiss]

Originally Posted by gigi

But you left your DNA on those bottles!!??!?!

Sorry, you got your !!s and your ??s in the wrong order.

[xanthous]

There's a guy that lives on our street, probably in his 70s, who takes care of a bunch of grandkids while the parents work, who we occasionally see going through people's recycling bins late at night or sometimes on the morning of pick-up day. Neighbors complain about how embarrassing it is that someone on their street is "picking through the garbage" and "bringing down the property value" but I kinda feel bad for all the responsibility he has at his age to take care of these kids, and he never says a peep or bothers anybody. So I don't care.

People regularly put out old broken down pieces of furniture, plants, old grills, mattresses (stuff in less-than-Goodwill condition), and somebody ALWAYS comes by and picks them up. I'm totally cool with that kind of recycling. One man's trash being another man's solution, and all that.

[Magiver]

Originally Posted by Oakminster

I vote no reason for you to care. You want the stuff to be taken away, and the stuff is being taken away. Who takes it, and who they sell it to, does not affect the end result from your point of view.

That's not true. Private recycling contracts are based on a certain return on investment. If companies or cities cannot cover the cost of recycling then the programs are at risk. My city has cut their pick-ups to every other week to save money. It is a real possibility that the program will be cancelled outright, which means almost all of the recyclable material will become landfill.

[winterhawk11]

Interesting responses. I'd been thinking about starting a thread like this for awhile now--we've got a little old Asian lady on our street (I don't think she speaks a word of English) who goes out in the wee hours of the morning and goes through everyone's recycling. I caught her at it one day when she must have been late with her rounds--she was sitting in our driveway, sorting through our cans all neat-as-you-please. She didn't even look scared or worried, just flashed me a grin and kept on what she was doing.

The way I look at it, the stuff gets taken away, she doesn't leave a mess, and she gets to make a little money off of something I'm not going to miss. What do I care? It's not my responsibility to be Recycling Police, and I'd prefer not to piss off my neighbors for petty things like that. If the stuff is picked up, I don't care if it's the recycling company, the little Asian lady, or the Recycling Elves.

[sugar and spice]

Originally Posted by justrob

Not picking on you, yours was just the last post.

I live in Wisconsin and we don't have deposits for cans here. Looking at the empties in the trashcan I see that 3 cans have markings for VT-ME-NY-IA-MA-CT 5c. One has ME VT MA NY HI IA OR CT 5c but also CA CRV MI 10c.

I could conceivably take these cans to IA or MI pretty easily and cash in for the deposit which is more than the recycleable value here in WI.

yes, you're right! the cans I just bought at Target do have that mark. I swear though, the cans I bought in NJ were not marked (I worked in Jersey, I bought a lot of soda there).

I was also thinking of a story my mom told when I was little (from the 80s). We went to Chicago every year to see relatives, one year she took the cans from the drive home into the local (Buffalo) grocery store and got the $0.05/can. Next week she goes back to the same store, they had a nice new sign up, announcing that cans returned for the deposit must have the NY mark.

Anyhow, so long as I'm posting again here's another link, which actually confirms a lot of what's mentioned in the OP:
http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/news/2...can-criminals/

[DMark]

Originally Posted by sugar and spice

Anyhow, so long as I'm posting again here's another link, which actually confirms a lot of what's mentioned in the OP:
http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/news/2...can-criminals/

Thank you, sugar and spice, for the link!
I usually read the Las Vegas Weekly - don't know how I missed that article, but it sums up exactly what I was talking about.

[appleciders]

Originally Posted by robardin

Very often in NYC, in fact, people leave relatively good condition furniture and other stuff on the curb on the assumption that someone will snag it who could use it. I myself have scavenged an office chair and a bookcase this way in my life (while a student) with no qualms, and have likewise left a dissassembled IKEA computer desk/hutch and a halogen lamp labeled "WORKING" that would not fit in my new apartment on the curb for urban scavengers to take (they were gone by morning). A beautiful thing if you ask me.

I tried that last year and didn't have much luck. The couch in question was pretty crappy and a week later no one had taken it. So I put up a sign: "$25". It was stolen the next night.

[sugar and spice]

Originally Posted by DMark

Thank you, sugar and spice, for the link!
I usually read the Las Vegas Weekly - don't know how I missed that article, but it sums up exactly what I was talking about.

Yeah they mention the NV->CA switcheroo, and "illegal disposal operators" and the fact that recycling companies have rights to the bins. But they don't really say what the fines are if you get caught picking at the curbside level, which seems like the obvious place to attach the problem.

I guess I kinda feel like this is at least partly a flaw in the system. I mean, generally, if you have a something that has value then you don't leave it outside overnight, unsecured at the end of your driveway next to the trash cans. The problem with the trash-picking (I now know) is that the aluminum is supposed to help pay for the rest of the trash disposal. But if that's the case then maybe the people actually involved in this transaction (the town, it's residents, and the recycling companies) should take measures to ensure that the trash that has value is passed off properly. Or accept the loss and the fact that someone will have to cover the true cost of recycling other less valuable materials.

[Add99]

When money can be made, people recycle like mad. Like this:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8185844.stm

"Each morning he scurries around the apartment blocks, emptying the contents of festering bins into the canvas bag strapped to his back. He looks like a bee storing honey.

He has done this job for 14 hours a day, for 30 years of his life. "

[PunditLisa]

Originally Posted by gigi

But you left your DNA on those bottles!!??!?!

Yes, but it does no good without the body.

[Magiver]

Originally Posted by winterhawk11

Interesting responses. I'd been thinking about starting a thread like this for awhile now--we've got a little old Asian lady on our street (I don't think she speaks a word of English) who goes out in the wee hours of the morning and goes through everyone's recycling..

Damn immigrants taking all the good jobs.

[TheMadHun]

I feel sorry for our "recycling moochers". They take things from the roll-out bins and dumpsters behind the building, but never once they're moved to the curb. Because the city owns it at that point and they could get ticketed.

They are so poor I think the city should support them better so they wouldn't want this stuff.
And often they will find things that can be reused instead of put into the landfill. Nice coats and usable pots and pans.

But I resent when they leave dumpsters open and the animals scatter food around.
It's just the younger ones who do that, but it grates.

[calliopae]

I wouldn't be so sure about not paying the bottle fees and CRV in Nevada on occasion.

I recently bought a 6 pack of bottled O'Douls at a store in Northern Nevada and was charged a bottle fee. On top of that the bottle fee was taxed- not the purchase just the fee. It took me awhile to figure out how 2 cents was a 7.45% tax on a five dollar purchase.

I went and got the money back from the store. Often when the chain stores are located in California, the coding needs to be corrected for Nevada to not charge the extra fees. In this case they had not corrected it.

The moral of the story is to check your receipt.

On recycling cans, I believe they require a California ID to turn them in, in California. My uncle has two homes one in Nevada and the other in California. I believe he returns smashed cans from both locations in California.

Recycling in Nevada is difficult and in some counties not even available through the trash companies.

[Runs With Scissors]

Here's my idea (and I'm not being sarcastic):

On trash "night," stay up until you hear them. When you do, call the police. One of two things will happen. The police will come. Or they will not.

And then you've done your duty and you won't have to be pissed.

What I would do: nothing.

[Balthisar]

Originally Posted by ElvisL1ves

Don't make that bet. Deposit cans have different bar codes than nondeposit ones.

Not true, at least in Michigan. Our state government is getting upset that it's "losing" deposit surpluses from out of staters. As described above, we use nasty, disgusting, filthy machines* that simply scan the UPC code, which is, of course, "universal."

*Progressive stores have sinks and/or hand sanitizer stations near these disgusting things.

I throw my cans and bottles in the trash. As I've said before, I fully authorize anyone from out of state to claim my deposits on my behalf. Just don't exceed my limit. And since I'm out of the country right now, my limit is 0.

[chela]

I think the whole bottle deposit as "recycling" concept ought to be shitcanned.

Someone in the state legislature has again introduced a Bill to expand the bottle bill to include most beverages. I call BS on that, it's a waste of time,resources and it does not address the issue of hit and miss recycling here. Mighigan has a terrible recycling record for glass, tin and paper, I guess it would be better if we slapped a deposit on those too?

IIRC Detroit doesn't even have a recycling program, but they do have a big ol incinerator that burns everything. Oh well I'm on the west side, winds blow to the east.

[Balthisar]

Originally Posted by chela

I think the whole bottle deposit as "recycling" concept ought to be shitcanned.

...Mighigan has a terrible recycling record for glass, tin and paper, I guess it would be better if we slapped a deposit on those too?

While I can't disagree with your sentiment, I will point out that this was originally not a recycling effort per se (it was the 70's; no one cared), but a beautification/littering effort. Make people take back their cans, and they won't end up on the roadway. I became rich (in relative terms as a child) by picking up litter and turning it in. The thing is, as I drive through non-deposit states, I don't notice a change in the amount of roadside garbage. In the end, it's all about the state's coffers.

Oh, the 10¢ deposit is a simplification of the original rule. The 2-liter bottles were 20¢, and I can't recall if, possibly, the 3-liter bottles may have been 30¢ (of course, I'm not even sure if 3-liter bottles still exist).