California Redemption Value
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
California Redemption Value (CRV) is a deposit paid on purchases of certain recyclable beverage containers in California. The consumer pays CRV on the purchase of beverages with aluminum, plastic, glass, and bimetal containers and can be reimbursed if the containers are brought to a recycling center.
California Redemption Value is easily confused with California Refund Value, which is the amount recycling centers pay to consumers in exchange for empty bottles and cans. This discrepancy is usually unimportant because the redemption (or deposit) value is usually the same as the refund value, although they are different at times. The acronym "CRV" is often used to denote either.
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[edit] History
The CRV program was instituted in 1987, shortly after California passed the Beverage Container Recycling and Litter Reduction Act of 1986. It was one of many laws categorized as container deposit legislation that followed the Oregon Bottle Bill of 1971. Originally, California's "bottle bill" applied only to the containers of carbonated beverages; in 2000, the legislation was updated to include other beverage containers.
At its inception, the California law allowed consumers to return their beverage containers for 1 cent each. Refund value eventually increased to 2.5 cents (and 4 cents for larger containers) and then to 4 cents (and 8 cents) in 2004. In late 2006, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger passed legislation (AB 3056) to increase California Refund Value in the following calendar year. Effective January 1, 2007, recycling centers pay consumers 5 cents for containers less than 24 oz. and $.10 for containers 24 oz. or more. Redemption Value (the deposit customers pay at retail purchase), however, will remain $.04 and $.08 (respectively) through July 1, 2007. If the recycling rate has not reached 75% by this time, Redemption Value will also increase to $.05 and $.10. In other words, for the first half of 2007, consumers can enjoy a refund rate higher than the deposit rate.
CRV, like all container deposit legislation, has two main purposes: it seeks to encourage recycling and discourage littering.
[edit] California Department of Conservation, Division of Recycling
The California Department of Conservation, Division of Recycling administers the California Beverage Container Recycling and Litter Reduction Act. The primary goal of the Act is to achieve and maintain high recycling rates for each beverage container type included in the program. The Division provides a number of services to achieve these goals, including enforcement, auditing, grant funding, technical assistance and education.
[edit] Cost of CRV
CRV for aluminum, glass, metal, and plastic containers is:
- 5 cents for containers under 24 oz.
- 10 cents for containers 24 oz. or more
The retailer adds the cost of CRV on top of the beverage cost. This means that if a 12-pack of beer costs $10.00, the customer actually pays a total of $10.60—$10.00 for the beer plus a $0.60 deposit for CRV (12 bottles of beer times $0.05 equals $0.60).
[edit] Types of beverages
CRV is paid on the following types of beverages:
- Carbonated and noncarbonated water
- Carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks and sport drinks
- Coffee and tea drinks
- Beer and other malt beverages
- Wine and distilled spirit coolers
CRV is not paid on the following:
- Milk
- Medical food
- Infant formula
- Wine
- Distilled spirits
- 100% fruit juice in containers 46 oz. or more
- Products not in liquid or "ready to drink" form
- Products not intended for human consumption
- Containers not made of aluminum, glass, metal, or plastic
[edit] Non-Beverage Container Recycling
If you have questions on recycling materials other than CRV beverage containers, visit the California Integrated Waste Management Board website at CIWMB.
