TERRA Initiative Educates on Role of R2-Certified Electronics Recyclers
Focused in the Nashville region with plans to grow, TERRA offers a list of vetted, certified recyclers accessible online and is going out and talking to businesses.
SEATTLE (Waste 360): While electronics comprise about 2 percent of the solid waste stream, they are on the way to becoming the fastest-growing source of trash worldwide, according to the United Nations University. Discarded electronics also account for up to 70 percent of landfilled hazardous waste, reports the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
We hear of mismanagement of these materials and its environmental and societal consequences. This includes a rising tide of e-waste flowing into overseas dumps, sometimes shipped there from the U.S.; unsafe dismantling of components containing potentially dangerous materials; and incidents where data is not securely destroyed.
These are among reasons startup company TERRA was created.
Launched by Steven Napoli, in partnership with electronics processor Tri-Star Recycling in Nashville, Tenn., TERRA is an initiative to educate businesses and organizations and draw them to one place to access R2-certified recyclers—professionals who meet environmental and safety standards developed by Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI).
Focused in the Nashville region with plans to grow, TERRA offers a list of vetted, certified recyclers accessible online and is going out and talking to businesses.
Other components of the TERRA initiative are a program whereby the public can mail in electronics to be recycled at a discount and community events where people can drop off recyclables. Napoli has also gone out to schools, challenging students to collect unwanted electronics during fundraisers and get paid for what they bring in.
Getting big businesses to invest in e-cycling is TERRA’s biggest push now. It’s working to accomplish this by figuring out how to penetrate companies’ corporate structures to reach the people who influence strategic decisions. This is a task that recyclers have limited time for.
One challenge e-cyclers typically find is that when they approach large enterprise clients, those clients often don’t know what goes into recycling electronics, says Clarence Hollins, president and CEO of Tri-Star Recycling. And this has especially been a reality recently.
Courtesy: https://www.waste360.com