Lee's Pledge for 'Transparent PET Bottle Deposit System': "Collection Rate Will Soar, But Cost Is the Issue" [New Administration Policy Agenda]

Ministry of Environment Reports on Deposit System Implementation
Deposit Refunded Upon Return of Bottles
Securing High-Quality Raw Materials and Reducing Production Costs
Burden of 500 Billion Won for Collection Machine Installation
Concerns Over Declining Profits for Existing Businesses
"Building Social Consensus Must Come First"

The Lee Jaemyung administration has identified the introduction of a 'transparent PET bottle deposit system' as a key initiative for transitioning to a post-plastic society. This policy aims to simultaneously reduce plastic usage and improve high-quality recycling. The government assesses that the transparent PET bottle deposit system could effectively replace the current 'Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)' scheme. However, there remain significant challenges to be addressed, including building social consensus for implementation, coordinating among stakeholders, and, above all, the enormous infrastructure costs, which are estimated to be in the hundreds of billions of won.

According to government sources on the 27th, the Ministry of Environment reported its plan to implement a transparent PET bottle deposit system?a campaign pledge of President Lee Jaemyung for carbon neutrality?during a ministry briefing to the National Policy Planning Committee in Sejong on the 19th. Previously, as a presidential candidate, President Lee had proposed establishing a national-level roadmap for moving beyond plastic, including a deposit system for transparent PET bottles.

The transparent PET bottle deposit system requires consumers to pay a certain deposit when purchasing a transparent PET bottle, which is refunded upon returning the used bottle. The initiative began in 2018 when Yoo Seunghee, then a lawmaker from the Democratic Party, introduced a revision to the 'Act on the Promotion of Saving and Recycling of Resources' to expand the deposit system to transparent PET bottles in addition to empty bottles. However, this bill was discarded when the legislative term ended.

Environment Day, Piled-Up Plastic Waste

(Suwon=Yonhap News) Hong Giwon reporter = On Environment Day, June 5, officials are processing the piled-up plastic recycling waste at the Suwon City Resource Circulation Center in Gyeonggi Province. 2025.6.5

xanadu@yna.co.kr (End)

Currently, the handling of transparent PET bottles is based on the 'Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)' system. This system obligates producers of products or packaging to recycle a certain amount of the resulting waste. To facilitate this, the Ministry of Environment mandates the separate collection of transparent PET bottles in all multi-family and single-family residences nationwide. For example, when transparent PET bottles are separated in apartment complexes, recycling companies collect them to secure high-quality raw materials. Because only transparent PET bottles are collected separately, the costs associated with cleaning and other recycling processes can be reduced. However, from the consumer's perspective, the inconvenience of removing labels and other preparation steps before disposal can lead to lower collection rates.

The core of the deposit system is to increase the plastic collection rate from consumers. Maeng Hakgyun, Director of Resource Recycling at the Ministry of Environment, explained, "The deposit system is a measure to strengthen collection under the existing EPR system. Once implemented, consumers will be less likely to carelessly discard bottles, and only bottles eligible for deposit will be selectively collected, leading to a clear improvement in recycling quality." He added, "This introduces an entirely new system where consumers are told, 'This bottle includes a deposit, so please return it to the collection machine instead of throwing it away.' Both the collection rate and the quality of collected bottles will improve dramatically."

The greatest obstacle to implementing the system is the enormous infrastructure cost. Installing collection machines nationwide is necessary, and experts estimate that, based on the German model of one collection machine per 2,000 to 3,000 people, the initial investment would range from 500 billion to 600 billion won. There is also potential controversy over who will be responsible for installing and operating the machines. Further discussion is needed on whether the government, producers, or recycling companies will bear the operating costs, and whether government funding will be used.

If existing collection businesses are excluded from the market, industrial backlash may be inevitable. Changes in the collection method could force self-employed individuals and others focused on plastic collection out of the industry, causing their profitability to decline sharply. In fact, the Ministry of Environment's attempt to introduce a 'disposable (plastic) cup deposit system' in 2022 was effectively scrapped due to opposition from consumers and small business owners. A Ministry of Environment official explained, "To avoid repeating past failures, building social consensus is essential. We have reported this point to the National Policy Planning Committee and are proceeding with caution."

Meanwhile, the Lee Jaemyung administration is also preparing a range of other policies, such as expanding the mandatory use of recycled plastic. From next year, food and beverage producers using more than 5,000 tons of PET bottles will be required to use at least 10% recycled materials, with plans to increase this to 30% by 2030.

The National Assembly Research Service, citing OECD statistics, reported that global plastic production doubled from 234 million tons in 2000 to 460 million tons in 2019, while plastic waste more than doubled from 156 million tons in 2000 to 353 million tons in 2019. In addition, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimates that the socioeconomic losses caused by plastic could reach up to 595 trillion won annually.