Take-Back Recycling- a positive alternative!
UNTIL
THE US ADOPTS PRODUCE TAKEBACK OF TOXIC E-WASTE, YOU CAN:
-Send your e-waste to recyclers who have pledged to keep your hazardous e-waste
out of developing countries, landfills and prison operations (http://www.ban.org/pledge/Locations.html).
-Support legislation in your state that requires electronics manufacturers
to take financial responsibility for the collection and recycling of their
discarded equipment (as in Europe); sets performance goals and standards; bans
export,
landfills, and prison operations for hazardous waste; deals with ‘historic’ waste;
creates no taxpayer liability; etc. (See http://www.computertakeback.com/legislation_and_policy/index.cfm for essential elements of model legislation.)
-Get your school or organization to responsibly recycle by sending its hazardous
e-waste only to recyclers who meet the Pledge criteria (http://www.ban.org/pledge/Electronics_Recycler_Pledge.pdf)
A NEW RECYCLING and waste management policy is gaining popularity in many other countries because it saves taxpayers money and is significantly better for human health and the environment than historic waste management practices. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), also called “Producer Takeback” is a product and waste management system in which manufacturers - not the taxpayer or government - take responsibility for the environmentally-safe recycling and disposal of their products when they are discarded or no longer wanted. Convenient and free, manufacturer takeback of end-of-life products means there is no reason for consumers to dump their hazardous e-waste elsewhere. Both Japan and Europe have passed comprehensive extended producer responsibility legislation for both electronic and electrical waste. The United States needs to follow suit by requiring manufacturers of electronic equipment to take back their products for free when no longer wanted, incorporating those end-of-life costs into the price of a new product. The most efÄcient way to solve the toxic waste problem is in the design and manufacturing phase of the product’s life cycle. For more resources and to get involved, please visit: www.cleanproduction.org, or www.computertakeback.com.