UNICOR, also known as Federal Prison Industries, has shut down its electronics recycling facilities at several prisons across the country, leaving a sizable gap in the U.S. e-scrap recycling chain. E-Scrap News has learned UNICOR will close its e-scrap recycling operations at five prisons across the country. The closures will occur in New Jersey's Fort Dix; Tucson, Ariz.; Marianna, Fla.;...

Oregonians are generating more waste and recycling less of it, according to a state report, and that includes electronics. According to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, the the total volume of electronics collected in the state decreased 11 percent between 2014 and 2015. Electronics accounted for 1 percent of all material recovered for diversion in the state in 2015....

If smartphone reclaimers and refurbishers think they're busy now, just wait until 2020. The latest worldwide market analysis from International Data Corporation (IDC) focuses on the used smartphone market, and it is forecast to grow exponentially. The report estimates the global market for used smartphones will grow from 81.3 million devices in 2015 to 222.6 million units in 2020. That...

A south Florida nonprofit group that trains and employs people with disabilities is closing one of its e-scrap drop-off facilities as it adapts to a changing market. ARC Broward IT Asset Recovery will close its collection space in Sunrise at the end of the year. It will still collect items at its main warehouse and production facility 10 miles away...

Two men are out of jail and awaiting a court date after they were arrested for possessing stolen plastics and selling the material to buyers in China. According to the New Jersey State Police, Yih Tan and Rong Wu of New York bought several containers of stolen plastics. The reusable plastic crates and other items were stolen from pharmacies, bakeries...

Novolex, a company that makes and recycles plastic bags, has been sold to The Carlyle Group, an investment firm based in Chicago. The deal, for which the financial details weren't disclosed, is expected to close by the end of the year. Novolex is a consumer of both virgin and recycled LLDPE and HDPE. Novolex is no stranger to the merger...

A government auditor in British Columbia has released a report on the Canadian province's EPR (extended producer responsibility) program for printed paper and plastic packaging. Overall, the auditor is pleased with the program but does identify areas for improvement. Under British Columbia's EPR law, producers and distributors of certain products are responsible for paying for their disposal. A stewardship agency...

The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) delivered a State of Recycling Address in Washington, D.C. recently. Two senators from the Congressional Recycling Caucus joined the event, which showcased the upsides of materials diversion. U.S. Senators Tom Carper (D-DE) and John Boozman (R-AR) called recycling an important industry that creates jobs. They also said it's a nonpartisan topic. "It's not a very...

A government auditor in British Columbia has released a report on the Canadian province's EPR (extended producer responsibility) program for printed paper and packaging. Overall, the auditor is pleased with the program but does identify areas for improvement. Under British Columbia's EPR law, producers and distributors of certain products are responsible for paying for their disposal. A stewardship agency called...

After operating within the framework of "take, make, dispose" for so long, can major corporations, retailers and consumers acclimate to a circular economy? A new pilot project spearheaded by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation -- and financially backed by the Walmart Foundation, Target, Republic Services and Dow -- aims to find out. The project, called "Beyond 34: Recycling and...