A key statehouse Democrat says the governor’s bid to add more containers to the state’s bottle deposit law is "in jeopardy." A nickle deposit fee is added to all beer and pop containers sold in Iowa and folks return the empties, mainly to grocery stores, to redeem that deposit.
Governor Culver wants non-carbonated drink containers, like water bottles, added to the deposit system, but Senate Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal of Council Bluffs says it’s just too difficult to get agreement between the grocers who don’t want to deal with the empties and the environmentalists who want more containers added to the deposit to boost recycling.
"One side wants to repeal the law. The other side wants to expand it," Gronstal says. "Neither side can muster the votes to get that done, so it’s kind of a cease fire now." Gronstal made his comments this weekend during an appearance on Iowa Public Television.