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BOX 334
BRIGHTON,
Vol. 96, No. 12
A SA5A40 :
staid
25 Cents
By JUDIE.MATHERS
Staff Writer
Both proponents and opponents
of the controversial bottle bill for
Pennsylvania recently had their
turns to present arguments to
Senator Ray Musto, D-Pittston,
at meetings held recently at the
Sheraton-Crossgates in Wilkes-
Barre.
The proposed Senate Bill 191,
known as the ‘Reusable Con-
tainer Act,” establishes require-
ments on the disposal of bever-
age containers to alleviate litter.
The bill would require a refund
value of not less than five cents
to be placed on every beverage
container sold in the Common-
wealth, except those sold for
consumption on an interstate
passenger carrier.
Under the bill, retailers would
have the responsibility of accept-
ing empty containers of the kind
they sell and would pay the
refund on those containers to the
consuymer. The retailer, in turn,
would receive payment of the
refund, plus two cents for han-
diing, on each empty container
from the beverage distributor or
beverage manufacturer. The
Department of Agriculture would
be required to establish a pro-
gram for redemption centers for
such containers and to establish
respective regulations.
As a whole, the beverage
industry is opposed to the pro-
posed bill, claiming deposit legis-
lation would cost Pennsylvania
consumers $150 million per year
in handling fees the industry
would have to pay. -
Leonard Falcone, of Trucks-
ville, vice-president of Falcone
Beverage Company in Pittston,
feels the added costs would cut
down on sales which, he claims,
are already low across the state.
Falcone doesn’t think the pro-
posed bill would solve the litter
problem, either.
“I hate the litter just as much
as everyone else,” Falcone said.
“It’s disgusting! But beer and
soda bottles and cans are only 20
percent of the problem an the
industry is working on that.
Anheuser-Busch has had a recy-
cling program with all their
wholesalers for the past four
years. and it’s working. Right
now, 30 to 35 percent of alumi-
num cans are being recycled,
and we expect that to grow to 90
to 95 percent over the next three
or four years.
“These things take time,” Fal-
cone continued, ‘‘but all you have
to do to see that recycling is
working is nto otice that now
most of the beverage containers
you see beside the roads are
bottles. That’s because the cans
are being picked up by individu-
als and organizations to earn
(See MUSTO, page 10)
Both customers and
employees of the Dallas,
Shavertown, Harveys Lake
scenery.
and Noxen Water Companies
are expected to benefit from
the company’s move to its
new facility on Route 309 in
Dallas.
According to Joe Salla,
general manager of the
water companies, ‘‘This new
facility, plus other construc-
tion currently underway, will
slim-line operations and
make our services more effi-
cient. With the new garage
to house our equipment, we
Sipect less vandalism, which
will cut down on costs to the
consumer.
“The new storage tank now
under construction behind
Rose Village and the mains
which are being replaced
will help us maintain more
consistent service by provid-
ing a back-up in case of
trouble,’ Salla added. ‘The
water companies aren’t
growing or extending - they
are being rehabilitated.”
Salla explained the monies
for the rehabilitation have
been loan to the companies
through the Common-
Dallas Post/Ed Campbell
In order to assess the Back
Mountain’s views on the contro-
versial “Bottle Bill,” The Dallas
Post conducted its own ‘‘on the
street” survey. The survey, how-
ever, was not actually “on the
street’ so to speak, but rather
was conducted on the premises
of two local beverage distribu-
tors. Customers who were pur-
chasing their weekend refresh-
ments were approached late
Friday afternoon and questioned
regarding their feelings about
the proposed legislation. Their
opinions follow:
NANCY OLIVER: “I'm all for
it! There wouldn’t be as much
litter, and it would probably
work out to be cheaper in the
long run.”
BOB MALEY: “I’m against it.
I don’t think a nickle will stop
anybody from throwing anything
away. I'd rather see them
impose the $500.00 fine for litter-
ing.”
DAVE ASTON: “I'm in favor
of the bottle bill. I wouldn’t mind
returning the bottles, because I
know deposit legislation works.
I’ve worked in Oregon and Con-
necticut and I’ve seen it work
there. It would be worth the
aggravation to most of us, and if
people did throw away the bot-
tles and cans anyway, someone
Jackets presented
else would pick them up for the
money.”
DAVID PAYNE: “I'm all for
it. It makes sense to me. If I'm
paying five cents for a can or
bottle, I'm sure not going to
throw it away!”
BETTY WHALEN: “I'm defi-
nitly in favor of the bottle bill! I
just returned two cases. Returna-
bles can be resued, and that’s
better than just throwing the
bottles away for garbage.”
JACK CONSIDINE: “I'm in
favor of it . I was in New York
just the other day and it was
beautiful because they have the
bottle bill there.”
X
Photos,
page 10
Issue, $300,000,000 were
made’ available for loans to
water companies,’”’ Salla
said. ‘‘Dallas and Shaver-
town were among the first to
apply for the $500,000 maxi-
mum per company and,
because of our promptness,
received the money at the
low interest rate of 8.2 per-
cent.”
The companies officially
began operations Monday
from their new home on the
Tunkhannock Highway,
approximately 300 A as
south of Center Hill Road.
Constructed by the Trade
Eastern, Inc. of Kingston,
the new building has three
offices, one combination
office and conference room,
a waitingroom, a work area
and a filing room.
While the phone number
will remain the same (675-
1186), the mailing address
for the companies has been
Dallas, Pa. 18612. -
— JUDIE MATHERS
Sol
It’s circus time
GEORGE POEPPERLING
GEORGE POEPPERLING: “I
buy returnables now, so I'm in
favor of deposits. I can’t under-
stand why people would be
against it. Just take a ride
through the countryside and look
around!”
“Aunt Patty”
debuts today
“Dear Aunt Patty,” the only local
advice column, debuts today in The
Dallas Post.
Aunt Patty, a Back Mountain
resident who offers advice on all
kinds of problems, answers letters
in today’s premier edition of “Dear
Aunt Patty,” on page 7.
“Dear Aunt Patty’ will become a
weekly feature of The Dallas Post
as its author continues to respond to
our readers’ letters. Sénd your
letter to Dear Aunt Patty, c/o The
Dallas Post, P.O. Box 366, Dallas,
Pa., 18612.
JOE BORTON
JOE BORTON: “I'm in favor
of it. It would certainly seem like
it would save on litter. I buy
throw aways now but I wouldn’t
be opposed to returning bottles.
Inside The Post
Calendar ..... i1e:15,16
Classified ..... 17,18,19
Commentary ......... 4
Cookbook ............... 0
Crossword ....... isiail
Dear Aunt Patty .... 7
Obituaries ............. 3
People ............. 1,8,9
Police Blotter ........ 3
School .................. 14
Sports .......... 11,1213