At many German airports, including BER, passengers can throw their empty returnable bottles and cans into collection containers. The return proceeds go to social causes. Since May 2017, a whopping 650.000 euros have been collected in the federal capital.

The so-called one-way deposit in Germany is 25 cents per container. Passengers often don't have time to retrieve their "insert" in a shop immediately before the security check. However, the bottles and cans are too valuable for the garbage can, which is why the Berlin Airport Company has set up a drop-off box since 2017.

The "Donate your deposit" campaign started at what was then Tegel Airport and was then extended to Schönefeld Airport. The collection containers have been in the terminals at Berlin Brandenburg Airport since October 2020. In total, deposits worth around 650.000 euros have been collected at the three airports so far. The money went exclusively to the Berliner Tafel.

So-called "deposit officers" from Goldnetz gGmbH empty and clean the bins and sort the empties. In this way, 23 jobs for the long-term unemployed have been created so far. The Green Dot takes care of the logistics, that is, it takes care of the transport and recycling of the bottles and collects the deposit money. Since 2019, Coca-Cola Germany has been involved in the project with an annual donation of 30.000 euros.

“The large amount donated shows that even small gestures from our passengers can make a big difference. The "Donate your deposit" project is also being successfully implemented at BER Airport. We are pleased that despite the low air traffic during the pandemic, a sum of 50.000 euros has been raised since the opening. Especially in difficult times, help for people in emergency situations is very important," says Michael Halberstadt, Managing Director Human Resources at Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH.