The fever chart says it all: A trace follows a bumpy but decidedly downward trend line, marking a steep decline in how much Hawaii delivered on its recycling pledge.

This illustrates the basic impulse driving House Bill 1928, a measure that seeks to overhaul the HI-5 state recycling program for aluminum, plastic and glass beverage containers. The messy process of converting the current taxation and deposit redemption plan to something more efficient will require more work on this measure, and potentially further study.

But HB 1928 does represent a viable platform to start making some needed changes — drastically needed, given that the current paltry redemption rate of 51.8% of all recyclable beverage containers must be pumped up.

When the Hawaii Deposit Beverage Container program was launched 21 years ago, stores selling products with the HI-5 mark charged 6 cents on each container; a penny was retained for managing the program and customers could bring empties to recycling centers to receive the balance of 5 cents.

In the first four years the redemption rate rose to 78.3% — but from there it has tumbled steadily by about 27 points. That’s the lowest rate among 10 states that have a similar program, according to a national nonprofit represented at a recent hearing, the Story of Stuff Project.

The state has collected some $74 million for the unredeemed containers, a clear signal that the incentives were ineffective.

Hawaii faces a persistent challenge in directing waste to its already diminished landfill space, and HB 1928 is only the latest attempt to make the recycling program more effective. It proposes that the producers of containers would pay 5 cents per container sold, and that a nonprofit “producer responsibility organization” (PRO) would manage the program.

The idea is that this would pull administration and compliance oversight under one entity, replacing the currently fragmented system of distributors, redemption centers, retailers and the state, none of which is fully accountable for keeping costs and efficiency in line.

The aim is for the PRO to implement a plan for producers to register and be assessed fees, and for a recycling and redemption of containers to be developed.

That is cited as a strength by Chamber of Commerce Hawaii, which testified that the new system could make costs more predictable and “reduce exposure to audit and fraud.”

There are a lot of possibilities to be explored as the new plans are hammered out. Some advocates testifying before the House Committee on Energy &Environmental Protection are urging that glass containers be collected for cleaning and reuse.

Reverse vending machines — automated kiosks that accept used beverage containers, often deployed at retail locations — comprise one approach that could be studied.

The trouble of storing containers at home until a trip to the redemption center is practical is one reason many consumers say they give up on recycling.

The state Department of Health rightly called for amendments to the bill that would spell out details of the transition from the current setup to the PRO, including transfer of funds and keeping redemption services uninterrupted. The roles of the agency and the PRO in enforcement and other responsibilities also need clarifying.

It is certain that further refinements will be needed as the bill progresses to the House Consumer Protection &Commerce Committee. But it needs to keep moving.

The imperative to reduce Hawaii’s waste stream already has stalled for too long, and finding a more effective solution becomes more crucial with each passing legislative session.

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