Mission

Electronic waste, or E-Waste, includes TVs, computers, monitors, and other electronic equipment.  It is the fastest growing part of the solid waste stream.  Only about 12 percent of E-Waste is recycled nationwide and the rest ends up being either landfilled or shipped abroad, where it becomes mountains of trash on which third world kids climb.  Furthermore, according to the U.S. EPA, even the tiniest amounts of the toxic substances in E-waste can pollute ground water if leak out of even the most well-run landfill.  ELPC is proposing model legislation, like SB 2313 in Illinois, to create an E-Waste recycling program that makes both environmental and economic sense, and acts as an economic development tool to create jobs and revenue for residents and business.

 

Chicago Public Radio Quiz Show Highlights E-Waste Recycling Bill

April 22, 2008 - Check your knowledge of current environmental issues by listening to the annual Earth Day quiz on Chicago Public Radio's Worldview with ELPC Executive Director Howard Learner. This year's quiz featured questions and answers about the electronic waste recycling bill that recently passed the Illinois Senate, as well as a few upcoming environmental events. Listen to the show.

 

Illinois Senate Passes E-Waste Recycling Bill

April 17, 2008 - The Illinois Senate passed an electronic waste recycling bill, Senate Bill 2313, unanimously. Sponsored by State Sen. Susan Garrett, the bill creates a system by which manufacturers will partner with recyclers, refurbishers, and others to ensure that home computers, laptops, monitors, televisions, and printers will be kept out of Illinois landfills. Retailers, the Illinois EPA, and manufacturers will be responsible for providing information to electronics consumers as to what they can do with their old equipment. ELPC has been a lead supporter of the bill, which now moves on to the Illinois House.

 

ELPC is actively working toward the passage of legislation requiring recycling or reuse of electronic waste of all types. There are three basic categories of equipment that become electronic waste: Computers (monitors, CPU’s, and peripherals including printers), televisions and cellular phones.

No matter what category we look at, the sheer volume of e-waste is monumental.  Recent articles point to Americans junking 50 million computers and 130 million cellular phones every year.  Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore), who has co-sponsored federal electronic waste legislation, issued a statement in Spring 2005 saying Americans threw out 150 million tons of electronic waste in 2004.  Furthermore, the USEPA says 40% of the lead now going to landfills comes from junked electronic equipment.

Making the problem even worse is the ever-shrinking lifecycle of electronic products.  According to a March 2005 report RE-128 by Business Communications Company, Inc. (BCCI), the useful life of a television is now only ten years; for a computer, just three.

What goes into electronic products also is a problem.  Lead, mercury, cadmium, and other hazardous materials have been commonplace ingredients.  Consequently, the recycling process, if not handled in an appropriate manner, can be hazardous to both human health and the environment around a facility that is recycling incorrectly.

In some cases, what happens with our electronic waste is repugnant.  According to a February 2005 report from a group of international environmental organizations called the Basel Action Network (BAN), used electronics are often shipped to third world countries, where unprotected men, women, and children living in poverty are “paid” to disassemble the machines, thus exposing themselves to the aforementioned hazardous materials contained therein.  To make matters worse, many of these materials end up in local water, poisoning it.