As part of the Trump administration’s trade war with China, a number of tariffs have been levied on the import of Chinese goods. A handful of recycling companies and one trade group have sought exemptions.
Jerry Powell is the founder and editorial advisor of Resource Recycling, Inc., which publishes Resource Recycling, Plastics Recycling Update and E-Scrap News. He previously owned and managed a recycling consulting company and managed a recycling business in Portland, Ore. He can be contacted at [email protected].As part of the Trump administration’s trade war with China, a number of tariffs have been levied on the import of Chinese goods. A handful of recycling companies and one trade group have sought exemptions.
An assessment by E-Scrap News shows the vast majority of the recovered electronic material handled in the U.S. is processed by companies employing third-party-certified environmental, health and safety practices.
Credit: Joao Estevao A. de Freitas
The value of recovered circuit boards has risen in recent months, much to the delight of e-scrap reclaimers.
Industry consolidation and soft metal and plastics markets resulted in a decline in membership by e-scrap processors in the last year in the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries.
Nearly 300 IT product refurbishing experts convened in New Orleans this week to consider industry trends and to address barriers to growth. The event was the 14th annual Electronics Reuse Conference, now operated by the consulting firm E-Reuse Services.
A confluence of factors has led logistics experts to predict that American firms, including those in the recycling industry, will experience higher over-the-road shipping costs in the next six months.
Nigel Mattravers
Legislation and technologies have led to more formalized e-scrap processing in China and Hong Kong, experts meeting in Macau said recently. But key challenges remain, particularly in China’s new electronics take-back program.
Last week E-Scrap News reported on several warehouses in Arizona and Colorado where large amounts of CRTs were left behind when the plants closed. Two firms — Dow Management and Luminous Recycling — shut their doors, leaving as much as 10,000 tons of CRTs and CRT glass.
As part of an investigation into CRT glass recycling markets, E-Scrap News has learned that recycling processors in several states have abandoned operations after charging CRT suppliers and filling up a handful of warehouses with more than 10,000 tons of CRTs and CRT glass. State officials are now struggling with how to manage these problems.
Last week’s Electronics Recycling Asia Conference in Singapore touched on the circular economy, industry certifications and the diverse systems in place to recover e-scrap in Southeast Asia.