Uncorking the Bottles

As the NY Times reports this morning the governor seems hell bent on expanding the state's returnable container law, otherwise known as the bottle bill. The harbinger of the Spitzer position is his appointment of Judy Enck as "deputy secretary for the environment." As he told the Times, "an expanded program for refreshment bottles and cans" {refreshment?} is one of his key environmental priorities.

Now we know Ms. Enck very well having debated her all over the state 25 years ago when she was a representative of something called the Environmental Planning Lobby. From there she was promoted to "senior associate" for the environment at NYPIRG. So for the better part of three decades Enck has worked for advocacy groups that have a built-in bias against the private sector. Her appointment means that the governor may lack a certain sensitivity to the concerns of food retailers, but it certainly means that the bottle bill express has left the station.