The Democratic Alliance (DA) says it is in favour of a compulsory deposit being applied to certain recyclable goods, provided this deposit is redeemable by consumers.
”A compulsory deposit on the purchase of certain items has great potential to reduce waste and pollution,” DA environmental affairs spokesperson Errol Moorcroft said in a statement on Friday.
The principle was already being successfully applied in the case of cooldrink bottles, and this model could quite easily be expanded to include other recyclable items.
”Provided the government pursues this avenue, in which deposits are redeemable by consumers when the items are returned for re-use or recycling, it will have our support.
”What we must avoid is an indiscriminate tax, which merely places an additional burden on consumers,” he said.
Moorcroft’s statement follows reports that government is planning to introduce a new ”green tax” on a range of consumer goods.
According to a report in the Cape Times on Friday, new legislation, approved by Cabinet, will be tabled in Parliament within the next fortnight.
It says the aim of the proposed legislation is to put an economic value on waste, which will discourage dumping and reduce the amount of waste trucked to landfill sites. – Sapa