Alloway Bill Would Strengthen Electronic Waste Recycling Efforts

SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): Senator Rich Alloway (R-33) joined e-waste recycling advocates and stakeholders yesterday at a news conference to advocate a better approach for Pennsylvania communities in recycling electronic waste, such as old televisions and other outdated electronic equipment.

“Electronic devices play a significant role in today’s society, and many of us use them every day. However, we need to be responsible in ensuring these devices are disposed of properly in order to safeguard public health,” Alloway said. “This solution is the result of a great deal of work between my staff and all of the stakeholders in this issue, and I am confident that this solution will meet the needs of consumers and the environment for the foreseeable future.”

Pennsylvania updated laws pertaining to electronic equipment recycling in 2010. However, the law did not adequately fund recycling efforts, leading to a relatively small number of recycling options for consumers – many of which charged a fee for recycling.

After working with electronics manufacturers, retailers, electronics recycling businesses, collection program managers, local municipal leaders, non-profit organizations, and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Alloway recently introduced Senate Bill 800 to deal with deficiencies in the 2010 law.

Senate Bill 800 would help establish a network of e-waste recycling centers that would be readily accessible to consumers without the need to assess a recycling fee.

“The current law inadvertently created an environment in which a once-growing Pennsylvania electronics recycling industry nearly collapsed,” said Ned Eldridge, owner and CEO of eLoop, LLC, a western Pennsylvania electronics recycler. “This forced counties and recyclers across Pennsylvania to reduce or abandon their once productive programs.”

According to a recent survey conducted by the Pennsylvania Recycling Markets Center in conjunction with Penn State University, many e-waste collection sites and services are now unable to accept all electronic devices. In many counties recycling sites have closed or may have other restrictions such as residency requirements, carload limits, physical size limits of electronics accepted, or accept only certain items.

Programs now often exclude computer monitors and tube televisions. This causes Pennsylvanians to consider leaving their unwanted electronics in basements, garages, closets, and attics or worse, illegally dumping the items in a forest, vacant lot, or along the curb, Alloway said.

Courtesy: https://wasteadvantagemag.com