A draft of a new version of the e-Stewards certification standard will be released to certified processors for comment in October. In January, the public will get a look at it.
On Sept. 18., e-Stewards announced that a draft of Version 4.0 of the standard has been completed. The group says the new version is shorter, simpler and less prescriptive than the existing standard.
“In this version, we are taking smart steps to create a far more user-friendly version of e-Stewards,” Jim Puckett, executive director of Basel Action Network, administrator of the e-Stewards Program, stated in a press release.
According to the release, the new standard features requirements that processors also obtain ISO 14001:2015 and NAID AAA certifications. In addition, it includes performance verification via random unannounced inspections and use of GPS tracking devices, and it incorporates new Basel Convention trade rules.
“We are proud to be offering the e-recycling industry a business-friendly standard that provides customers with all that they desire,” Salomé Stähli, e-Stewards program manager, stated in the release. “We have created a very appealing package containing the highest levels of data security, international legal conformity and unparalleled performance verification, all now available at a very competitive price.”
A submittee of the e-Stewards Technical Committee has been working on the update for the past eight months.
Version 4.0 will undergo two comments periods.
The first, a 30-day period reserved for licensed e-Stewards processors and e-Stewards Enterprises, will begin on Oct. 21. They’ll receive the text of Version 4.0 at that time. After their comments have been incorporated into the draft, it’ll be released to the public on Jan. 16. At that point, the public will have three weeks to provide comments.
The final release of Version 4.0 is scheduled for February 2020.
Version 3.0 of e-Steward was first rolled out in 2017. Currently, 94 facilities are certified to the e-Stewards standard.
