Since the introduction of deposits on cans, more and more municipalities are suffering from so-called deposit hunters. This is evident from a tour of Omroep Brabant. These people look for cans and bottles in trash cans and garbage bags that are put out on the street. Solutions are being sought in various municipalities, but it turns out that this is not so easy.
Garbage cans are broken open, bags are torn open and waste is removed from garbage cans. In Bergen op Zoom, Breda, Eindhoven, Helmond, Reusel-de Mierden and Roosendaal, they see that this produces a lot of rubbish.
Since the introduction of a deposit on bottles and, since April this year, also on cans, they are increasingly suffering from this in the municipality of Breda. “The work of our employees is sometimes even made difficult by people looking for returnable bottles and cans,” says a spokesman for the municipality of Breda.
Failed trials
The municipalities are therefore looking for solutions. One of these is placing special donation rings around the trash cans. People who give the deposit to someone else can leave bottles and cans there.
Breda was the first municipality in the Netherlands to conduct a trial, but the result was disappointing. “After the end, we decided not to hang the donation rings in other places in the city. They were not used enough.”
A test was also carried out in Eindhoven with the donation rings in a number of parks. This showed that the rings were not or hardly ever used for returnable bottles or cans. Other debris was found in the rings and a number of rings even disappeared. That is why the trial has not been extended to the rest of the city.
Little fame
Eindhoven also has more and more deposit hunters since the introduction of deposits on cans, which causes more rubbish in the city. That is why the municipality is looking for a solution together with other parties. Despite the failed test in 2022, the donation ring can still be part of this. That is the answer of B and W to council questions from the PvdA.
The municipality of Den Bosch has not yet experienced any nuisance from the deposit hunters. It’s hard to say if that’s because of the donation rings that hang in four different places around the city.
“We do not see an increase in litter there either. This may be because the donation rings are not used often or because the deposit bottles or cans are taken from the rings, which is also the intention,” says a spokesperson.
According to initiator Eric Weekamp, unfamiliarity means that the donation ring is not yet an unprecedented success. According to him, the place is very important and it helps if municipalities pay some attention to it.
Maybe it will be a success in Roosendaal. The rings are in production there and are expected to be hung in July.
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