More than 1,000 cans and bottles have been dumped outside the Scottish Parliament to mark one year until the launch of the deposit return system.
The new scheme, which comes into effect on July 1, 2022, will see shoppers pay an additional charge when buying drinks in cans or bottles.
However, they will be able to get this fee refunded when they return their empty cans and bottles for recycling.
The Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland (APRS) and the Marine Conservation Society brought 1,085 cans and bottles to Holyrood on Thursday morning to represent the amount of litter the scheme will eliminate every day, per MSP, once it comes into effect.
‘It’s been a long time coming, and it’ll all be worth it!’
John Mayhew, director of APRS, said: “It’s wonderful to know it’s finally just a year to go until deposit return on cans and bottles across Scotland comes into effect.
“MSPs across parliament should be very proud of the work they did in getting us to this stage, and we know the public are right behind it too.
“one year to go! woohoo!” pic.twitter.com/nVkcAafRgM
— Have You Got The Bottle? (@yougotthebottle) July 1, 2021
“Going by our experiences visiting places that have deposit return, like Estonia and Norway, people across Scotland will very quickly find that littered drinks cans and bottles have become a thing of the past.
“I personally will be waiting for the shops to open on day one, July 1, 2022, with a huge smile on my face, ready to buy a drink, drink it on the spot and immediately return it.
“It’s been a long time coming, and it’ll all be worth it!”
Lib Dems urge government to sort out issues before July 2022 launch
Orkney MSP Liam McArthur is now urging the government to use the next 12 months to iron out any kinks in the system before it goes live next July.
This comes after the launch of the new scheme was delayed from April this year.
He said: “Scottish Liberal Democrats were the first party to adopt the policy of a nationwide deposit return scheme for the sake of our climate and cleaning up our seas.
“This scheme has already been delayed once so the Scottish Government must ensure that when it comes into force in a year’s time any kinks have been ironed out.
“That means making sure that the scheme works in island and rural areas and ensuring that manufacturers are not pushed to turn to more harmful materials.
That means making sure the scheme works in island and rural areas and ensuring that manufacturers are not pushed to turn to more harmful materials.
“This is one small step among many that Scotland needs to take over the next five years.
“From supermarket packaging to disposable coffee cups, we need to tackle our throwaway culture head on.”