Marissa Heffernan started working for Resource Recycling in January 2022 after spending several years as a reporter at a daily newspaper in Southwest Washington. She can be contacted at [email protected].
Aurubis’ latest facility has the capacity to process over 180,000 tons of complex recycling materials annually, including circuit boards and copper cables. | Courtesy of Arubis
German company Aurubis has brought its multi-metal recycling facility in Georgia online after two years of work. Continue Reading
A Sept. 14 fire forced Oregon reuse and recycling nonprofit Free Geek to shut its doors, but community support helped the organization get back up and running. | Courtesy of Free Geek
After a devastating fire at Portland, Oregon-based Free Geek in mid-September, a community outpouring of support has the nonprofit close to its fundraising goal for recovery. Continue Reading
SB 1215, which was enacted in 2022, expands California’s decades-old e-scrap recycling program to include battery-embedded products. | Jittawit21/Shutterstock
The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery is working through rulemaking on SB 1215, which adds items with embedded batteries to the state’s existing e-scrap recycling program. Continue Reading
The Stewardship Agencies of BC is a coalition of extended producer responsibility organizations, including Call2Recycle Canada, Return-It, the Electronic Products Recycling Association, Recycle BC and others. | MAXSHOT.PL/Shutterstock
The Stewardship Agencies of British Columbia worked together to divert a record 425 million kilograms of end-of-life products from landfills in 2023, and leaders pointed to factors including the efficiency and education that collaboration brings. Continue Reading
Apple’s iOS 18 update will expand its “Activation Lock” to include individual high-value parts, including batteries and displays. | Attila Fodemesi/Shutterstock
Apple’s latest operating system update will expand a feature unpopular with reuse and repair advocates to not just cover the phone as a whole but also individual parts. Continue Reading
SERI recently opened up its new certification process for photovoltaic panels. | Heinz Trebuth/Shutterstock
Solar panel recyclers can now achieve a specific SERI certification, under the newly added Appendix G for photovoltaic modules. Continue Reading
Under HB 1386, lithium-ion batteries and a handful of additional electronics are banned from landfills and incinerators in New Hampshire. | Mihai Andritoiu/Shutterstock
Starting in July 2025, lithium-ion batteries and a handful of other electronic devices will be banned from disposal in landfills, composting facilities and incinerators in New Hampshire. Continue Reading
The average age of iPhones at trade-in in the second quarter of 2024 was 3.8 years, while the average age of Android devices was 3.5 years.| ErickPHOTOPRO/Shutterstock
Consumers continue to hold onto devices longer before trading them in, according to second-quarter data from a trade-in company. Continue Reading
Ridwell provides bags for customers to aggregate batteries in for collection. At Ridwell’s Portland facility, batteries are stored in barrels that contain CellBlock fire suppressor material. | Colin Staub/Resource Recycling
Working with battery stakeholders and certified e-scrap downstreams, Ridwell is providing household collection of a wide range of items rarely accepted at the curb in a growing number of markets. And the company is doing it with transparency in mind.
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Encompass provides OEM parts and tools to industry and consumers alike. | Rabanser/Shutterstock
Robert Coolidge’s business is built around supplying replacement parts for consumer electronics, and he sees right to repair laws as a benefit for consumers – with the right safety guardrails. Continue Reading