Mandatory Deposit for PET Bottles to Start in 2021

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"Turkey Deposit Return System Project (TÜDIS) Opening Meeting" has been held by the General Directorate of Environmental Management of the Ministry of Environment and Urban Planning and the Istanbul Technical University (İTÜ) NOVA Technology Transfer Office.

Birpınar said in the meeting that the use of plastic bags in the grocery sections in supermarkets has seen a significant increase, therefore they plan to replace plastic bags with paper bags.

"In Turkey, if you introduce a deposit of 10 cents on a PET bottle, the citizen will pay it, will throw it into the machine and get the money back.

"Mandatory deposit will start in 2021, after this project. This will solve many environmental problems.

"Our goal is to recover an average of 40-50 billion beverage packages per year, 50 percent of the packaging that is on the market. Currently, one out of every 10 glass bottles, 3 out of every 10 PET bottles, and only 5 out of 10 aluminum beverage cans can be recycled. The rest, unfortunately, is thrown into nature." (BA/DB/VK)