thanks @bonibom

@pureem. yes! water wasting is a big issue. i'm assuming you're referring to them leaving the sink running 24/7? this wouldn't be that. i'm talking low water/high efficiency type commercial dish washing. this process, traditionally soaking up tons of energy and water, has become a lot greener over the last decade or so (because of a change in standards, think half the water usage with machines pre 1994 vs post). and think about if all the starbucks everywhere participated in this program, over time there'd be even more resources to throw at research and development of smaller and better dish washing processes. that's why this external party is needed. as you said starbucks got publicly slammed for their water usage. but BetaCupCo could use publicity to gain support for their use and/or development of continually improved, potentially upcyclable systems. the members (starbucks and the like) provide the money and BetaCupCo drives the enviro aspects. both parties benefit!

also, think how much water is saved from not using paper cups. woah! talk about a process that's heinous for the environment...

@qvistar, thanks for the support! that's an interesting point. i've never tried that at starbucks, but i know it has worked at other places i've bought coffee from. still, this is not necessarily a hand them your dirty cup and they re-fill it kinda deal. (i mean you could do a one-for-one trade, and that would be just like bringing your own tumbler, since you skip putting down the deposit and skip getting back the last one. i've never seen someone turned down because they hadn't washed out their tumber first...) the health codes shouldn't be a problem because all cups would be washed in a commercial strength sanitizer before they were put back into circulation, just like at any restaurant or bar.

@jblevinson - thanks for the positive feedback, good point about that psychological barrier about cup reuse. it made me think about how we ASSUME all the cups in restaurant aren't going through crazy uses on the side - but actually, we can't always be certain. i figured the two ways to tackle this was the mandatory installation and use of the sanitizing machine, as well as having people use new / their own lids each time. that's the part we put our mouth on anyway. maybe there could be a way to put a stamp on the cups, that wears off when it is used on something solid, so those cups can go through an extra cleaning process. at the same time though, how many times have you thrown out moldy food and reused the tupperware, simply by hand washing it in the sink? or bought a product made form recycled material, where that material could have been ANYTHING really, cat litter scoops! i figure when the cups pass their prime they'd get broken down and turned right back into new cups, that way they stay new and fresh, of course this means a material that can be completely recycled and used for the same quality product, rather than being downcycled.
i will incorporate these ideas as well as lay out a better structured / easy to read business plan, phasing of the idea! ... coming soon

@mmm11105, awesome, that's a great idea to have a betacup price and a deposit. not sure it would be 10 cents, (maybe even more).

@dmac, i see you're concern and you're definitely not the first person to express this concern. i think the things that work here are the deposit/refund system, the third party management, and the idea that you don't have to do a one-for-one trade or remember your own tumbler every time you go to get coffee. The main issue is cleanliness, so what would be ideal is a fully recyclable material such as glass or aluminum. Problem is aluminum conducts heat and glass is heavy and brittle.

But i've got another idea! Same basic principle, except it solves the whole cup cleaning dilemma. I hope you'll all check this out:
http://www.jovoto.com/contests/drink-sustainably/ideas/5212