A nonprofit group buys California-based Isidore Electronics Recycling, and two lawmakers think 2017 may be the year a “right to repair” bill passes in Minnesota.
Processor acquisition: A major Los Angeles nonprofit organization that helps the formerly incarcerated find jobs purchased Isidore Electronics Recycling. The Los Angeles Times reports that Homeboy Industries used donations to finance the purchase of Isidore, which also provides employment opportunities for previously incarcerated individuals.
Weight continues to fall: Washington state reports that 2.4 million pounds of TVs, computer and monitors were collected for recycling in January 2017, 24 percent less than the weight collected in January 2016. The Washington Department of Ecology reports a continuing decrease in weights collected through its extended producer responsibility program for electronics is likely a result of slimmed down design of newer products and fewer CRTs in the stream.
Overwhelmed event: An electronics drop-off event in The Villages, Fla. collected so much material organizers had to shut it down early, according to Villages-News.com. Collection events in 2015 and 2016 garnered a combined 90,000 pounds of material, but this year’s event collected more than 70,000 pounds.
More drop-offs: Will County, Ill. hopes to expand the number of e-scrap collection sites and one-day collect events this year, according to the Chicago Tribune. The newspaper also reported that an earlier closure of an electronic drop-off site led to a noticeable increase in dumping in a nearby forest.
Right to repair: Two Minnesota state senators are optimistic the legislature will approve a “right to repair” bill this year, according to citypages.com. The legislation, which aims to help non-manufacturer-authorized shops repair electronics, has nearly 4,000 letters of support.
Heavy lifting: A local government in Pennsylvania is limiting free electronics drop-offs to three items a month, because some people were previously dropping off truckloads worth of material during collection events. Local news outlet The Morning Call also reported that Emmaus will require residents to unload their own cars, after two borough workers hurt themselves unloading heavy TVs and filed workers’ compensation claims.
