The plastic, metal, and glass bottles used in the soft and mineral drinks industry have become an annoying problem for citizens and authorities in most countries.
The excessive use of these bottles has aggravated the waste crisis, and the scattered garbage in certain spots in metro stations and subways has distorted the clean image of these places. In order to encounter the environmental harms, and maintain hygiene in transportation facilities, the Russian capital plans to deploy special machines, similar to those selling soft drinks and snacks, but with a reverse role: buying plastic and metal bottles from citizens.
According to the proposal, which is being considered by the Russian authorities in cooperation with the environment and transport ministries, the new machines will be deployed in metro stations and subways, so commuters can use them to dispose empty bottles.
Based on a given mechanism, the machines would transfer a credit into transit passes to offer passengers one or more free trips.
Experts are currently studying the implementation of the proposed project backed by the concerned official institutions, and mainly the environment ministry, which sees it as an opportunity to encounter the unwanted waste phenomenon, and a step towards endorsing a bill that ban the use of such types of containers.
The project supporters agree that the idea could address the waste problem, because citizens would prefer to "throw wastes" in a machine that gives them some money in return, rather than throwing it anywhere else, without benefits. Therefore, they advise everyone "If you are a subway passenger, keep the bottles, and you will get a free trip."
