Cost of Recycling Municipal Solid Waste With and Without a Concurrent Beverage Container Deposit Law

he purpose of this article is to contribute to the literature on the effect of beverage container deposit legislation (BCDL) on the cost and amount of the household portion of municipal solid waste recycled. A.S. General Accounting Office report concluded that dual systems cost more than either alone and that the combination diverts a greater amount of solid waste from landfills, which is supported by this analysis. However, the report's conclusion that a dual system becomes more cost-effective as landfill disposal costs increase cannot be supported over reasonable ranges of the marginal savings from not having to dispose of recycled materials. The cost of recycling is higher in communities with dual systems. Recycling programs without BCDL divert as much or more waste from disposal than with BCDL.