In the last few weeks, we’ve seen a lot of our competitors tell customers that, as of Jan 1, it’s “illegal” to throw out your e-waste. It must be properly recycled (with them) or you will be fined. The problem I have with this marketing tactic is that it’s misleading.
I fully support the legislation. It’s a great start and has done a tremendous amount to raise awareness of the issues central to e-waste. But the issues I’m going to bring up refer specifically to NYC, how we’re impacted and how certain things can be misleading. For a good, quick summary/opinion of the legislation, check out Kate Sinding’s (of NRDC) blog post on the topic. We’re an NYC company. We live, work and operate in NYC. As a result, we’re finely tuned to NYC’s specific needs.
So how are you being misled?
To begin with, the legislation started on April 1, 2010 and the only requirements are that electronics manufacturers (Apple, Sony, Dell, etc) are required to cover some costs for collecting and recycling e-waste in the state. They do this through traditional e-waste collection methods – various drop-offs points and collection events. No mention of a solution to the transportation and convenience issues NYC’ers face.
The next milestone was January 1, 2012 when the first part of the disposal ban kicked in. This is what everyone is now referring to. But the problem is that it only applies to businesses in NYC – individuals and households are not part of this (that happens on Jan 1, 2015). So why is pushing this message misleading the consumer? Because most Manhattan-based businesses aren’t impacted by this. They don’t handle their own trash. It’s handled by building management – who are affected by the law. And they have their own relationships – more often than not with trucking/hauling, scrap or waste management companies. Definitely not with companies who understand the specific issues and needs of e-waste.
The legislation does not mention any standards of recycling other than saying that items can’t end up in a solid waste or hazardous waste facility. Great! No landfill or incineration! But feel free to arbitrarily throw the items (with the lead, copper, mercury, cadmium, etc) in a shredder to get to those precious raw materials. It also doesn’t put any restrictions on exporting items so go ahead and sell to third world countries. Make your money on the export and let the company overseas do what they want with the items – standards need not apply.
In using our competitors, you may be compliant with the law but are you certain they’re handling your items in the way you want? The flashy website, the words “recycling” on the truck and the personal guarantees are all nice but it may be smoke and mirrors. What you need to know is who runs the company, where the items go after collection, how and where they’re processed and who their partners are. Does the company or their partners have any kind of certification to support the standards they claim? Most of this information can be found on the company’s website and won’t take you more than a few minutes to figure out.
Do you want to follow the letter of the law or do you want to do the right thing?
-md