Legislation introduced in Pennsylvania increases the amount of e-scrap that manufacturers would be on the hook for recycling each year.
Legislation introduced in Pennsylvania increases the amount of e-scrap that manufacturers would be on the hook for recycling each year.
Representatives from major electronics manufacturers took to the stage at last week’s E-Scrap 2016 conference. They detailed efforts to create more sustainable devices and also took aim at some requirements of state electronics recycling programs.
Debate over state electronics recycling laws has reached new heights in recent years, and the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) that help fund the programs have been at the center of the discussion.
Several years of lagging recovered material totals have led leaders of Oregon’s e-scrap program to slash weight targets for manufacturers beginning next year.
In its annual release of OEM collection obligations, the state of New Jersey made a significant announcement regarding CRT management.
According to a letter sent out to electronics manufacturers and obtained by E-Scrap News, the state’s e-scrap program will not allow OEMs to fulfill 2014 collection goals by sending CRT glass for processing as alternative daily cover (ADC).
“In light of the R2 Solutions Board of Directors unanimous vote prohibiting the use of CRT glass as alternative daily cover (ADC), ADC cannot be used to fulfill manufacturers’ collection obligation pursuant to the requirements of the Electronics Waste Management Act,” states the letter from Guy Watson, NJDEP’s chief of recycling and hazardous waste management.
The CRT-to-ADC debate has sprung onto the e-scrap landscape in the months since Finland-based Kuusakoski Recycling announced a partnership with Illinois’ Peoria Disposal Company for a technology that, according to the companies, opens the door to a safe landfill application of CRT glass. The strategy has caught the attention of many in the industry because it offers a disposal option that is cheaper than moving glass to traditional lead smelters.
However, in March, R2 Solutions, which administers the R2 certification, announced it will not allow R2-verified firms to move glass to ADC operations.
Before New Jersey made its determination on the issue, officials for state-run programs in Wisconsin and Minnesota announced their own prohibitions on CRT-to-ADC options, while Illinois and Vermont – citing limited downstream processing options for glass and a constrained market – have decided to permit firms to resort to the option if needed.
Interestingly, New Jersey’s announcement comes amid the state’s much-publicized struggles to keep up with funding the proper collection and processing of growing streams of scrap electronics, including CRTs.
All television manufacturers will have until June 9 to submit collection plans to New Jersey DEP, and the plans must clearly identify downstream processors for the material.
Environmental officials in Pennsylvania say manufacturers aren’t paying enough to ensure collected electronics are getting recycled.
Minnesota is the latest state to consider updating its e-scrap recycling law.
Starting next month, $3 million worth of grants will be available to local governments in New York that are paying to recycle electronics. The money, from the state’s Environmental Protection Fund, is supposed to help municipalities cover shortfalls in the program.
Oregonians are generating more waste and recycling less of it, according to a state report, and that includes electronics.
Electronics manufacturers are launching an e-scrap recycling pilot program in Nebraska, an effort to explore sustainable systems that aren’t driven by state law.