Much Ado About E-waste

On March 26, the CEA (Consumer Electronics Industry) kicked off its Washington Forum, an event that brings members of the consumer electronics industry together with policymakers, with a morning devoted to the subject of e-waste, the billions of tons of computers and consumer electronics devices tossed into the garbage and ultimately into mountains of landfill each year. Today's electronics are filled with nasty substances, including cadmium, lead, arsenic, mercury, and many others. With the average household owning twenty-six consumer electronics devices, proper disposal has become an important political issue. E-cycling would make sure the products were disposed of properly, with the reusable parts harvested and used for new machines.

The keynote speaker, Oregon's Senator Ron Wyden, called for a "preemptive strategy for a national policy on e-waste." The CEA is advocating the establishment of a single national plan that would consolidate and standardize the e-cycling process, but there are other initiatives underway that are worth discussing.

Initiatives to date fall into three major groups:

Private Sector/Voluntary Efforts: Earlier this year, Michael Dell, chairman and CEO of Dell Computers, launched Dell.com/earth (http://dell.com/earth) to tally Dell's environmental commitments. Dell recycles all computers absolutely free of charge. Other companies, including Hewlett Packard, Best Buy, and others, have initiated a variety of initiatives for recycling. A number of cell phone providers are also doing voluntary recycling, too. (Greenpeace ranked the electronics industry on its green-ness last year.) Last year, according to the EPA, 34 million pounds of electronics were recycled by manufacturers and retailers as part the Environmental Protection Agency's Plug-In To eCycling program. Of course there's a cost to managing the recycling effort, and it's hard to imagine that the cost isn't figured into the price of the equipment and passed along to the consumer.

State Efforts: Thus far, four states have passed legislation making recycling of electronics equipment mandatory. California, Maine, Maryland, and Washington each has its own policy. Non-compliance in these states can mean financial penalties for the producer. In some cases, like California, the cost is passed along to the consumer. In others, the manufacturer is sent a bill for the number of pounds of equipment that brand recycled. The good news about states enacting legislation is that recycling can promote new local business and the state has an additional revenue. The downside of state legislation is that there are 50 states. If the first four are any indication, no two states will have the same policy. The speakers on the CEA panel refer to this as a "patchwork quilt approach" (see chart that shows various approaches state-by-state) and fear that it will impose a terrible burden on companies that have to comply with so many different regulations.

National Control: A nationwide program to recycle would need to be created from scratch. All of the industry players would have to agree on what gets recycled, by whom, and for how much. But it would be much easier for companies to comply with than a patchwork of individual state policies.

The dial is moving in the right direction for quick adoption of an e-cycling plan. In 2006, California recycled 3.4 pounds of CE devices per capita (125 million pounds). This year a number of other states, including Minnesota, Oregon, New York, and Massachusetts, are gearing up to move toward some sort of state e-cycling program. One of the best quick-skim sources I've found to keep up on e-waste news is Environmental News Bits.

The next hurdle will be education. A CEA study announced earlier this year found that three out of four consumers had no idea about how to recycle their products (but three out of four of those said they would recycle if they knew how).

Looking for a place to unload your old electronics? The Consumer Electronics Association launched myGreenElectronics. Enter your ZIP code and find out where you can recycle in your neighborhood.

How are you recycling your products these days?