Just Put it in the Trash (E-waste Massachusetts style)

by Madeleine Kando

We have been collecting old cell phones, wires, keyboards, computers and even two t.v. sets for years. Not because we are hoarders or even too lazy to toss it, but because we just don't know what to do with it. It's not like you can grind it down the garbage disposal.

So it's been sitting there, in our garage, nicely forgotten, as if it didn't exist. Out of sight out of mind, as they say. But my husband had the bright idea to buy a shed so we had no choice but to open Pandora's box.

I called the town's Public Works department to ask what their policy is on recycling electronic equipment. They told me they only pick up t.v. sets and old monitors (because both contain lead).

'What about my scanners, printers, lcd monitors, cell phones, wires?' I asked. 'Oh just put it in the trash', the nice lady said. ‘But I don't want to put it in the trash. Isn't there another way to dispose of it?’ She had no answer to that.

So here I am, a resident of Massachusetts, the 'technology state', and I am stuck.

Like our pets, we outlive our gadgets by many generations. When my beloved dog Max expired, I brought him to a crematorium. I cried for a whole week because his disappearance left a hole in me the size of Mount Vesuvius.

But there is no crematorium for my computer. Massachusetts doesn’t even have ‘E-waste’ laws. The woman said to bring it to the landfill and let her get on with her day. I was on my own.

Weeks later my scanners and old laptops are still in the garage but at least I have a lot more (very disturbing) information which I will be happy to share with you:

In America, only 19 of the 50 states have e-waste regulation. In the states where there is no regulation, it is up to the individual’s conscience to do the right thing. For the past ten years Congress has tried to pass a bill for Federal e-waste legislation but it’s still sitting on someone’s desk.

In Europe all twenty-seven EU countries have e-waste regulation. Not only have they had E-waste regulation since 2002, but it covers many more categories than in America. In the states where E-waste regulation exists, only four categories are covered, whereas in Europe it covers ten categories (refrigerators and washing machines all HAVE to be recycled.) The responsibility for recycling is placed on the manufacturer.

The E-waste recycling business in the US is booming, even without regulation, because most businesses want to do the right thing. Many manufacturers have started take-back programs, some of which are free, some of which are not.

But the problem with ‘non-regulated E-waste management’ is that there is no standard to go by, either for the consumer or the manufacturer. That makes the whole process very expensive. It also allows the illegal export of E-waste to developing countries where it creates a huge environmental and health problem.

Some recyclers are honest and actually dispose of hazardous E-waste properly. Other recyclers stuff containers with their monitors and sell it to the highest bidder who then ships it to China or Africa under the pretence that it is ‘donated’. (See: A Walk Around Guiy).

So which is better: voluntary state by state participation or a national directive that will force everyone to do the right thing, manufacturer and consumer alike?

Tomorrow I am off to Best Buy. They have a take-back program and will accept any brand for free. I asked them who they partnered with for recycling and I recognized one of the names on the list as 'e-steward' certified. So I pray that my old PC will be given a proper burial and not end up in some African village poisoning a child’s lungs. leave comment here