“One of the dirtiest regions”
According to estimates, nearly 5 % of all cans in the Walloon region gets dumped in nature. “You have to assert that the Walloon region is one of the dirtiest regions in Europe”, Walloon Minister for the Environment Carlo di Antonio (cdH) told radio station Bel-RTL on Tuesday. That is why they want to enforce a 0.1 euro returnable deposit on cans and plastic bottles in an attempt to remedy the problem in two years’ time.
It is not only necessary for the environment, but it could also lower maintenance costs as the government currently spends 20 million euro to keep roads clean. Local authorities spend even more, with a bill up to several hundred million euros.
The Flemish government has also put the option to charge a returnable deposit on cans and plastic bottles into its governmental agreement. “Flanders is one of Europe’s finest when it comes to its waste policy and we would like to keep it that way. We can do that by investing in an innovative recycling economy. That is why we are going to study the impact of a deposit on (plastic) bottles and cans”, the statement reads.
