And that doesn't include the free bottles for band members who drink only water to keep their uniforms stain-free.

On Nov. 6 after MSU's game with Ohio State, 151 Dasani water bottles were left in just the five rows of the band section sampled as part of a litter survey.

Pete Pasterz, manager of MSU's Office of Recycling and Waste Reduction, says the bottles left as garbage on campus, whether from football fans or students simply walking to class, need to be reduced.

"We need to provide plastic recycling bins on campus specifically for bottles," he said.

The University of Michigan and Pennsylvania State University are the only two Big 10 universities with football game recycling plans. See sidebar.

At the last MSU home game against Wisconsin, an unscientific survey of 25 students found that 92 percent would use separate recycling containers for bottles. Four percent said they wouldn't and 4 percent were neutral.

Many Michigan environmental groups hope to encourage them.   They are attempting to include water bottles in Michigan's container deposit law, which now requires a 10-cent, refundable deposit on beer, soft drinks and wine coolers.

The incentive is effective.   A sample of the trash from 800 seats after the Ohio State football game contained just nine containers that fall under the current deposit law.

Michigan United Conservation Clubs, Michigan Environmental Council, Container Recycling Institute, Sierra Club and several other groups hope to expand the bottle bill to include most non-carbonated beverage containers, which were not sold commercially when the law was first enacted.

The state's 25-year old bottle bill is both popular and effective, said Donna Stine, a policy specialist with Michigan United Conservation Clubs, the group that spearheaded the original bill.

"The bill recovers over 95 percent of the state's returnable bottles and cans," she said.

Another informal survey, this one of 79 MSU students and fans, found that 83 percent would vote to expand the bottle bill.   Only 8 percent disagreed; 10 percent remained neutral.

With the increasing popularity of non-carbonated drinks, more plastic containers are going to landfills.   A Container Recycling Institute study showed a decline in the plastic bottle recycling rate in the United States from 22.1 percent in 2001 to 19.9 percent in 2002. That rate is down from the 39.7 percent achieved in 1995 and represents the seventh consecutive year of decline.

In absolute terms, plastic bottle recycling declined from 834 million pounds in 2001 to 797 million pounds in 2002. The 3.2 billion pounds of plastic bottles wasted in 2002 was almost three times the amount wasted in 1995.

Not everyone supports an expanded bottle bill. Opponents include beverage manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers and bottlers.

Grocers are already stretched for space, labor and hygiene, said Eric Rule, legislative representative for the Michigan Retailers Association.

 "Spartan and Meijer use reverse-vending machines with large overhead costs and space issues," Rule said. "Some of the proposed added containers, like the Gatorade bottles, do not fit into the stream."

Some people don't think grocers should have to hassle with yet
more bottles. Others fear that expanding the bottle bill will increase the number of people who return bottles for their income.

"People are going to say that you are encouraging the hobo problem," said a fan after the Wisconsin game. "Recycling bottles gives them a way to make money without a job."

Containers that now have the deposit are remarkably attractive to scavengers, who cart off most of those discarded in and around the stadium on any given football Saturday. At least eight people worked the two parking lots adjoining Spartan Stadium the day of the MSU-OSU game . One said he could make $40 in two or three hours of picking up bottles and cans. Another, Lansing resident John Irwin, who works for a local construction company, said he generally makes $60 to $70 per game.

"This is a hobby," Irwin said. "It's addictive - very .

"Besides, it's all free."

A study conducted by R.W. Beck, for the Container Recycling Institute, found that even though bottle bills cost 22 percent more to collect each container than recycling programs in other states, the recovery rate is 457 percent higher. The study of what was then 10 deposit states found they recovered more beverage containers than the 40 non-deposit states, even though they only have 29 percent of the country's population.

The effects of deposit systems on litter reduction are well documented. The Michigan Department of Transportation reported an 80 percent drop in beverage container litter between 1978 and 1986 after the bottle bill was enacted and a 38 percent reduction in total litter on Michigan's roadsides.

Peter Broderick, a spokesman for the Michigan Beverage Association, says his organization is neutral on the issue.

"We don't expect prices to jump due to the expansion in Michigan because the economy doesn't call for it," Broderick said. "We are not sure this will be a burden on grocers or retailers, but it gives them the position to raise prices if need be."

And at least some consumers are ready to expand the bottle bill.

Lindsey Beth Sarbo is among those surveyed who favor recycling containers. Moreover, she supports deposits on water, tea and juice bottles.

"It's only logical," she said. "Think about it, it is very rare to see deposit bottles in the trash."

Forum: What do you think?