Press release of the Deposit System Administrator n.o. “They can resist bears: 12 new collection containers have been added in national parks“, Bratislava, August 22, 2023
Containers through which visitors can support the restoration of national parks have been installed in the Tatras, the Low Tatras, the Pieniny Mountains, the Poloniny Mountains, the Slovak Paradise, the Slovak Karst and the Veľká Fatra. A total of 12 more “support machines” were installed in tourist locations during the month. By handing over a deposited plastic bottle or can to such a container, visitors waive their entitlement to the deposit and donate it to the national park in which they are located.
The deposit system administrator is constantly actively involved in expanding the network of collection points and various alternative solutions for the return of deposited packaging. This step, in cooperation with the Administrations of individual national parks, is a key measure to mitigate the problem of loose waste. The installation of these new collection containers – “support machines” – is part of the active support for the development, protection and maintenance of cleanliness of national parks.
Wherever there are many tourists
“We are pleased with the involvement of national parks in this initiative and, last but not least, the support of this idea by visitors. We believe that with this step we are closer to a cleaner Slovakia, said Marián Áč, Director of the Deposit System Administrator, about the functioning of the system.
The containers are installed in places identified by individual national park administrations. To ensure the efficient use of these collection containers, they were strategically placed in places with a high frequency of visitor movement. Visitors have easy access to the opportunity to back up their packaging and contribute to the cleanliness of our environment. Of course, they can also hand over the backed-up packaging in the standard way at any collection point, which can also be found through the map of collection points available on the www.slovenskozalohuje.sk website.
The locals know, we will
teach the foreignersThe public needs to be constantly educated, which is why we plan to focus on foreign visitors so that they know that they can return the deposited packaging or donate it to the protection of national parks. In an effort to increase the participation of visitors, including those from abroad, a simple information campaign is being prepared. Its aim will be to raise awareness, especially among foreign tourists, that they have the opportunity to return or donate their deposited packaging.
The containers have been specially tested for resistance to bears. The administrator of the deposit system had special collection containers made to resist possible bear attacks. Their functionality was tested at the Bojnice Zoo in cooperation with the Brown Bear Intervention Team.
Facts about the deposit system
+ Deposit is a tool that can increase the amount of collected plastic bottles and cans to more than 90% and also contributes to reducing the amount of loose waste in nature;
+ deposit uses the principle of circular economy, closing the “bottle-to-bottle” and “can-to-can” material cycle, thus saving natural resources;
+ became operational on 1 January 2022;
+ all plastic and metal single-use beverage packaging from 0.1 to 3 litres is deposited, with the exception of milk, milk-containing drinks, syrups and hard alcohol;
+ deposited packaging has a large “Z” in the recycling arrows on the label and the text “BACKED UP”;
+ the amount of the deposit is uniform for plastic bottles and cans, 15 euro cents;
+ when buying a drink, the consumer pays a deposit of 15 euro cents, which is indicated on the price tag or separately on the notice board;
+ the deposit is returned to the consumer after returning the beverage packaging to the collection point, so the amount of the deposit does not affect the price of the drinks;
+ drinks are returned to the vending machine – deposit machine in a larger store, in the case of smaller groceries at the checkout, where they are read via a handheld scanner;
+ deposited packaging is returned uncompressed, with a lid and a legible barcode;
+ Almost 3,200 supply points are registered in the deposit system.
About the Deposit System Administrator
It is a non-profit organization created by a consortium of four entities – the Association of Producers of Non-Alcoholic Beverages and Mineral Waters in Slovakia, the Slovak Association of Beer and Malt Producers, the Slovak Alliance of Modern Trade and the Confederation of Commerce of the Slovak Republic. They represent the obliged persons under the Deposit Act, namely producers of non-alcoholic beverages and mineral waters, beer producers and representatives of wholesale and retail trade. Together, their members place almost 80% of all deposited packaging on the market and represent more than 3,000 business operations.
For more information, you can contact us:
Monika Farka, Marketing Manager of the Deposit System Administrator
Monika.Farka@spravcazaloh.sk
press@spravcazaloh.sk
