Federal Prison Industries, Inc., better known as UNICOR, is once again facing a lawsuit regarding worker safety and environmental standards at its electronics recycling operations. UNICOR, which operates an inmate work program at federal corrections facilities, has been processing electronic scrap for nearly two decades. The suits allege that improper material handling, storage, safety and general working conditions exposed inmates...

The number of R2 certified facilities is booming, according to the latest tally of facilities from R2 Solutions. As of this week, 215 facilities have been certified to R2, both in the U.S. and abroad. This translates into 140 companies with at least one certified facility. By contrast, 31 firms with 71 facilities have certified to e-Stewards. A closer examination...

PepsiCo has unveiled the two-year results of its Dream Machine project, which is intended to provide recycling receptacles in high-traffic public places, such as gas stations, retail stores, sports stadiums and others, while also providing consumers an incentive to not trash their recyclables while on the go. Launched on Earth Day of 2010, the Dream Machines are basically reverse vending...

The Basel Action Network has announced that, effective immediately, the e-Stewards standard will now include all the elements of the R2 standard. Requirements for the multi-stakeholder R2 standard have been incorporated into e-Stewards, meaning e-Stewards certifying bodies – currently AQA International, Orion Registrar and QMI-SAI Global – will audit for both the R2 and e-Stewards standards. The move is expected...

E-scrap recycling company Regency Technologies has partnered with Dlubak Glass Company, a processor of scrap TV and PC monitors, on a joint operation that will recycle CRT glass. Under the agreement, Regency Technologies will open a new location in Upper Sandusky, Ohio adjacent to Dlubak Glass. The companies are hoping that the arrangement will allow them to completely breakdown, dismantle...

A researcher in China says that 88 percent of the blood samples taken from children in Guiyu, China clearly show lead poisoning. The findings are made more significant by their publication in the government-owned China Daily. China has, until recently, downplayed reports of Guiyu's e-waste hazards. Huo Xia, a Shantou University medical college cytologicial analysis professor, visited the town in...

A relatively new organization calling itself the Coalition for American Electronics Recycling is urging Congress to pass the Responsible Electronics Recycling Act – and is specifically calling for restrictions on the export of electronic scrap to developing countries. The CAER includes a growing roster of 29 U.S. electronics recycling firms, which operate 74 recycling facilities in 34 states, and includes...

The California Attorney General announced today the state has filed a lawsuit against ENSO Plastics, Aquamantra and Balance Water for allegedly falsely claiming their plastic bottles were biodegradable. Accusing the companies of exploiting Californians' environmental concerns, Attorney General Kamala Harris says labeling on the products that describes the bottles as biodegradable is not supported by evidence, and misleads consumers into...

The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries unveiled the results of a comprehensive survey of the U.S. electronics recycling industry at the 2011 E-Scrap Conference held in Orlando, Florida. Eric Harris, director of government and international affairs for ISRI, told attendees at the opening conference plenary session that that the organization undertook the survey in response to growing speculation and a...

Two executives of a Colorado electronics recycling firm were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges related to allegations that it illegally exported over 100,000 end-of-life CRTs overseas. According to the indictment, between 2005 and 2009, Brandon Richter, owner and chief executive officer of Executive Recycling, and Tor Olson, its former vice president of operations, presented ER as a...