about the ABDA
Alberta has over 200 Bottle Depot Members serving all areas of the province – these independently owned and operated businesses are part of a regulated system that ensures all types of beverage containers sold in Alberta are returned for recycling. Depots help keep our environment clean while allowing beverage containers to be recycled into new goods. They also provide local jobs, invest in their local economies, support community fundraising and causes, and so much more. Our Triple Bottom Line Benefits for Albertans summary showcases some of the many ways that Depots benefit Albertans.
The ABDA proudly represents our Members who strive to provide their services in a convenient and quick manner that reflects the highest levels of integrity. Depots act as eco-financial institutions and are proud to be key parts of a world-leading beverage container return and recycling system!
The deposits on beverage containers are your money held temporarily in trust by beverage manufacturers until you bring your containers back to a Depot. Alberta’s Bottle Depots pay you that full deposit value in return for your empties, and they count, sort, and assemble shipments of containers. The manufacturers receive the sorted and counted containers, then repay your deposit to the Depots and provide a handling fee to Depots for sorting the containers into over 20 different categories for maximum recyclability and maximum material value. Depots assist the manufacturers to resell the recycled containers by providing clean material streams; this helps manage the system costs.
An average of $600,000 in deposits is returned to Albertans each day - and reinvested in local economies. Over $30 million from deposits flows to Alberta community organizations through bottle drives and return campaigns every year. Depots are proud to be an integral part of your community!
The ABDA is the recognized voice of Depots in Alberta. We work in collaboration with our industry stakeholders as part of the beverage container recycling system. Learn more about stakeholders:
Alberta Beverage Container Recycling Corporation (ABCRC) - acts as the collection system agent for non-refillable containers.
https://www.abcrc.com/about-us/about-abcrc/
Beverage Container Management Board (BCMB) - responsible for regulating the beverage container recycling system.
https://www.bcmb.ab.ca/about/
Alberta Beer Container Corporation (ABCC) - collection service provider for refillable beer containers.