The answers to the anti-deposit arguments of Fevia, Comeos and Fost Plus

The packaging federations reiterated these arguments when they were heard by the Walloon parliament. The arguments they put forward against the directive are frequently raised. In this article, we will take a closer look at these arguments.

Rob Buurman

27 Oct 2021

The packaging federations repeated these arguments when they were heard by the Walloon Parliament. The arguments they put forward against the directive are frequently raised. In this article, we delve deeper into these arguments.

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1. “Behavioural change is better than a deposit return scheme”

“In short, it is not a deposit scheme that will solve the litter problem. Rather, a thorough change in mentality and behaviour of litterers through prevention, awareness-raising and enforcement,” according to Fost Plus, Fevia and Comeos.

The business community promotes a generic approach that only addresses the so-called ‘polluting consumers’, but never looks at the choices companies make regarding packaging. They constantly advocate for a very general approach focusing on communication campaigns, clean-up operations, plans for more litter bins, and fining offenders. But anyone walking through Belgium can see with their own eyes that, after all these years, this approach has not yet led to the desired result.

A deposit scheme leads to behavioural change. When empty packaging still has value, the behaviour of the person holding that packaging changes. Almost no one throws away money.

CE Delft calculated on behalf of the Dutch government that a deposit scheme leads to a reduction of up to 70-90% less plastic bottles and cans in litter. This indicates a very strong change in behaviour. Figures from Germany also show that hardly any cans are thrown away thanks to the deposit scheme.

2. "Enforcement is better"

There is simply a lack of evidence that fines work to tackle litter effectively. The ban on littering, including the threat of a fine, has existed for a very long time. Yet Belgian verges, parks and nature remain full of cans and bottles.

In order to issue a fine, it is necessary to catch a litterer in the act. This is a practical difficulty, say the municipalities responsible for this enforcement. This makes the chance of being caught very low, and it is precisely the chance of being caught that is decisive in changing citizen behaviour through enforcement. Increasing fines is not straightforward, and it is questionable whether it would have any effect.

3. "A deposit scheme does not solve all litter"

“A deposit scheme does not solve litter”, the business community often claims. And of course: it is a fact that litter consists of more than just bottles and cans. No one claims that a deposit scheme on those beverage containers will solve the entire litter problem in one fell swoop. However, the fact that a deposit scheme on plastic bottles and cans does not prevent cigarette butts or sweet wrappers from entering the environment is not a good reason to disqualify it.

Because small PET bottles and cans together make up 40% of the volume of litter. And a deposit scheme is the most effective and proven method to keep these beverage containers out of litter. A deposit scheme reduces cans and bottles in nature by 70-90 per cent, the consultancy firm CE Delft concluded in its study commissioned by the Dutch government.

Figures from other countries support these research results. In Germany, where a 25 eurocent deposit is levied on cans and bottles, 97% of plastic bottles and 99% of cans were collected back (2018 figures). Strong results are also achieved in the very short term. In Lithuania, they achieved a return rate of 91.9% in just two years.

So for 40% of the volume of litter, a deposit scheme is indeed a good tool. There is no other system that tackles 40% of litter in the short term. If a medicine cures 4 out of 10 patients, but not all 10, is that a reason not to use the medicine? Precisely for this reason, 8 European countries use it and another 8 European countries decided to introduce or expand it.

The time and budgets saved on cleaning up cans and bottles can be used to tackle the rest of the litter, such as cigarette butts and sweet wrappers.

4. “Aren't we already champions at collecting and recycling with the blue bag?”

4.1. Overestimated figures

The European Union has set a target for the separate collection of plastic bottles. Article 9 of the Single-Use Plastics Directive requires that from 2029, 90% of plastic bottles must be collected separately to prevent litter, and r