People love their electronic gadgets. When a new phone model comes out, they line up to get the latest technology. An older computer slows down and gets replaced. TV screens get bigger and bigger. As the things in a business or community are replaced, it creates a mountain of electronic waste that becomes a problem for local and state governments.
E-waste costs money to recycle. While some states have shifted the cost to the manufacturers, not every state has manufacturer responsibility policies in place. That leaves it to the government to figure out how to organize and fund recycling programs.
The Problem With E-Waste
The EPA doesn’t have the most updated statistics on e-waste, but in 2009, an estimated 2.37 million tons of electronics were discarded. Only a quarter of those electronics entered recycling programs. The rest ended up in landfills.
The Global E-Waste Statistics Partnership reports that Americans generated just over 7.7 million tons of e-waste in 2019. Of that, about 4.35 tons were properly recycled. It’s not great. Every electronic device that goes into a landfill adds toxins that can end up in the soil and water.
Old electronics have toxic chemicals and heavy metals like flame retardants, lead, lithium, mercury, and zinc. If they end up in a landfill, in time they could leach into the soil and groundwater and make animals and people sick.
While it’s less common now, it used to be that e-waste would go right into an incinerator. If filtration systems were not adequately removing toxins, carcinogenic fumes could cause birth defects or cancer.
One of the world’s largest e-waste dumpsites covered 24.7 acres in West Africa. Infant mortality rates around that site increased by 10%. Heavy metals from the incineration or dismantling of these electronics made it to eggs, lettuce, and meats like beef and goat. It’s part of the reason there’s been a large push in the past decade to stop sending electronics from going overseas for processing.
Because of this, local and state governments need to do their part and encourage strong recycling rates within their communities. Recycling needs to happen more, and it needs to happen with electronics recycling companies that abide by e-Stewards and R2 recycling guidelines.
The Challenges Local Governments Face
How can local governments effectively recycle electronics when there’s so much of them? It’s hard enough to keep up with recycling efforts on things like cardboard or plastics. Governments face a challenge in setting up and maintaining effective e-waste recycling programs.
Imagine trying to clean up a never-ending mess with not enough help. That’s what many local governments are dealing with.
- Funding Issues
Funding is a big hurdle. When taxpayers don’t have more money to contribute, raising taxes to cover the cost of an electronics recycling program isn’t appealing. This is why some states are turning to programs where electronics manufacturers have to arrange take-back programs or pay a fee to be able to sell their products in that state.
Even with manufacturer take-back programs, it doesn’t always cover the cost of workers who collect, sort, and package the electronics. It doesn’t cover the cost of storage. Federal funds can help offset some of this. However, changes to funding programs as the government trims its budgets make the availability of funds an uncertainty.
- Confusing Laws and Regulations
The U.S. doesn’t have e-waste rules. There are rules on hazardous waste, but it’s not specific to electronics as the laws were drafted long before e-waste became a problem. Instead, states have to draft their own e-waste laws, and half of the states don’t have any rules drafted.
In states where there are rules, they aren’t always clear. A person might live on the border of two states, where another state’s recycling centers are closer. If the rules in those states are drastically different, it can become confusing.
If a business has facilities in multiple states, and each state’s e-waste recycling rules differ, someone needs to be on top of each state’s rules and ensure employees know the differences if they work in one facility but get transferred to another.
- Lack of Awareness and Education
Here’s one of my biggest frustrations with my local town government. They do not post news and events on their website. They rely on a private Facebook page. If you’re not on Facebook and part of that group, you cannot access the town news. Complaints haven’t changed anything.
If your state or local government isn’t making sure everyone can access information on electronics recycling, there will be community members who are unaware of new programs or changes to existing programs.
When they’re not aware of the laws or recycling policies, they might end up throwing an item into the trash. They may store an item into a box that goes into their garage for years.
- Inconvenience
In a rural community, it’s possible that residents spend an hour each weekend driving to a facility to wait in line for another hour and then have an hour drive home. They aren’t going to want to bother. If recycling is inconvenient, it’s a problem.
It would be so much easier if local governments set up drop-off boxes in convenient locations like the local school lobby, a grocery store entrance, or community buildings like a library or rec center. Participation would increase, which is the goal.
What Will It Take to Create Effective Recycling Programs?
How can local and state governments create effective recycling programs? It’s going to take a multi-stage approach. Ideally, it would start with the federal government creating nationwide rules that standardize electronic recycling. For now, however, the government sticks to hazardous waste rules and relies on states to create their e-waste recycling programs.
As you create an effective recycling program, you need to consider and implement the following.
1. Consideration of the Space for Collections
Electronics come in many sizes. Desktops take up far more space than a small tablet. A tablet takes up more room than a smartphone. Because there is such a range in terms of sizing, it’s hard to allot enough space when you don’t know what items will arrive each day.
You might have drop boxes throughout your town, but one person could drop off four computer monitors and take up most of the available space. If community members find the collection bin is full, what do they do now?
2. Consideration of Data Security
There are also security concerns. When they drop off an old laptop, what happens next? How do they know that data security is taken seriously? Make sure you’re partnering with a specialist in data destruction.
3. Clarity in How to Recycle
Even when there are systems available, your community members need to know what their role is. If they’re uncertain where to go or how to prepare an electronic item for recycling, they’re less likely to participate. Make it clear.
The e-waste challenge seems impossible, but it’s not. ERI works with communities to heighten electronics recycling rates. Talk to us about our ITAD services and how we can help you with a community collections event that is as easy for residents to use as it is for you to arrange.