JUAN IS GRATEFUL for New York's bottle bill, which imposes a refundable nickel deposit on bottles and cans of water, soda and beer. He and his wife earn about $500 a week by collecting empties from recycling bins, bars and restaurants in Bushwick, Brooklyn, which they trade for money at a local redemption centre. Their jangling cart is among the many that helped the state recycle over 5bn drinks containers in 2016. New York's governor, Andrew Cuomo, now wants to expand the bill to cover most non-alcoholic containers, to help fight litter and boost recycling throughout the state. Juan and his wife are delighted. Companies that handle the state's recycling, however, are howling.
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