Hi there:
I have been following the emails about CFL bulbs, and thought that, with the mercury, disposal could be a question. But that brings to mind issues related to disposal of other products that should not enter the landfill stream. Here in Winnipeg there are a couple times throughout the year that special provisions are made to facilitate disposal of things such as chemicals, paint, whatever, but, as a consumer, I have found that I have not received a consistent message about what to do with batteries, obselete computer parts, cell phones or other items when they finally must be discarded. I am curious as to what other areas have done to inform people about appropriate disposal, and what they have done to facilitate this disposal. Of course, consumers have a responsibility to make the phone call which would provide answers to these questions, but even providing that phone number could be useful. I would wonder if consumer uptake could be reduced if people who would be responsible about recycling feel that an item may cause more work.
Zanna Joyce
Winnipeg
Appropriate Disposal and Recycling an Issue
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The recycling of electronic or e-waste is becoming a hot issue in Australia.. Planet Ark has been working with the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) which is the overarching body for the computer hardware industry. Together we have produced an e-waste report, which we have presented to the federal government, and were currently in discussions with them about implementing our recommendations. The essential problems as we see them are: * The fragmented nature of the industry large numbers of retailers (about 50%) are small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) who are not members of the industry association, so any industry sponsored recycling program is exposed to a potential free-rider problem * The unknown (and we believe very large) quantity of existing e-waste and obsolete material stored in garages and warehouses around the country what we call historic e-waste * The high cost of recycling such complex products (comingling of different types of plastics, metals etc) * The very small profit margins for retailers of computers and other electronics a number of attempts at setting up industry-sponsored recycling programs have failed due to the prohibitive cost We have made these recommendations: * Setting up a Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO) to tackle the problem we have a similar arrangement with the manufacturers of printer cartridges in Australia, with whom we have set up Cartridges 4 Planet Ark (www.planetark.com/cartridges). Our recycling partner Close the Loop ( www.closetheloop.com.au) has developed world-first technology with zero-waste-to-landfill for these similarly complex products. * Dealing with historic e-waste (for which no-one wants to take responsibility for the reasons stated above) as a separate issue from future e-waste * Providing every new product (sold from an agreed set date) with a recycling certificate or guarantee, the cost of which recycling is built into the cost of the product. * Once the recycling systems have achieved economies of scale, deal with the problem of historic e-waste (probably with government and industry sponsorship) Essentially, therefore, we are proposing a user-pays system with industry and government promotion and support. This could also help, in part at least, address the problem of the reducing cost of these goods encouraging their over-consumption. And once a successful program is in place for computers and peripherals, it could be extended to cover all electronic devices. Finally, industry is increasingly focussing on design for the environment, which will make these products easier and cheaper to recycle. The issues of built-in obsolescence sustaining markets, and consumers love of the new are, needless to say, harder to tackle.
Regards,
Rebecca Gilling.
Project Manager
Planet Ark Environmental Foundation
PO Box 4 Wentworth Falls NSW 2782
Ph: 02 4757 8989
Mob: 0414 922376
Email: [email protected]
Joyce,
In Sonoma County, a toxic recycling program was recently instituted where residents can drop off their old paint thinners, used oil, garden chemicals, expired medications, ancient nail polish, used glue, batteries (lead), and old fluorescent lights (mercury). There is no charge to drop them off. For those residents, seniors excepted, who want the toxic products picked up by the county, there is a nominal $35 fee. To reinforce the importance of keeping toxins out of the landfill, regular mailings are a reminder as well as county-provided stickers to be attached to garbage cans reminding residents of those expired products that should not be tossed out. http://www.recyclenow.org/r_householdtoxics.html
Please check out the Sonoma County Waste Management web site for ideas to be considered for use in your community.
Rob Koslowsky
Santa Rosa, California
http://worldperspective.bravehost.com/Sciencecology.html