Austin Chronicle
Richard Whittaker

No one likes a bill they worked hard on to die, but there’s particular fury in the environmental community today that Gov. Rick Perry killed House Bill 821, the famous zombie TV recycling legislation. “Perry had no good reason to veto this bill,” Texas Campaign for the Environment Director Robin Schneider said.

A Magnavox? This should go in a museum, not a landfill
Photo by Richard Whittaker

The bill got TV manufacturers into the recycling game: A particularly important issue since the digital switch made many sets unusable. Schneider’s already had the chance to challenge Perry on his veto. This morning, before a rally at the Capitol, she and some protesters headed to UT’s Volunteer Leadership Summit, where Perry was scheduled to speak. As she explained, she came out of the elevator and there was the gov. When she asked for an explanation, “He said this was an industry bill. Well, coming from Texas’ business-friendly Perry, that’s an interesting argument.”

Schneider is particularly frustrated because Perry struck the bill down even though it had wide-spread support (including big industry names like GE, Thomson, Philips and the TechAmerica trade association) that almost exactly mirrored the consensus-backing of the 2007 session’s computer recycling bill. “This bill uses the free market to let the companies come up with their recycling plans, and the fees were modest,” she lamented.

More importantly, Perry’s staff told her he was fine with it – right up to the point he vetoed it.

Dallas Observer
Kimberly Thorpe

At noon today in Victory Park, a group of enviro-activists dressed for Halloween dropped to the concrete to rather dramatically mark the end of analog television. The switch from analog to digital television was supposed to happen back in February but was delayed when an estimated 6 million U.S. household were unprepared for the switch. But time’s run out: The flip was switched, oh, ’bout 90 minutes ago.

As a result, the Texas Campaign for the Environment  — the group behind today’s Victory Park demonstration — estimates that 3 million televisions will be tossed out in Texas (about 20 to 80 million sets nationally). Since old television sets contain anywhere from four to eight pounds of lead, this is a hell of a lot of toxic waste to hit the environment at once.

“These zombies are here to serve as a reminder that trashing obsolete televisions is a toxic option that may come back to haunt us,” said program director Jeffrey Jacoby, as his zombie staff stood frozen behind him. “You don’t want these in your landfills,” he said, motioning toward the zombies. (And there’s a slide show from this forthcoming.)

The most environmentally conscious thing to do is always to reuse items rather than toss them. Local Radio Shacks confirm they’re still busy selling converters today, while Best Buy is offering to recycle old televisions up to 32 inches for $10.

Jacoby is calling on Governor Rick Perry to sign a bill passed in the Legislature to mandate more statewide recycling programs for used TVs, and “keep these old dead televisions from entering our landfills and water sources.”

Photos: Kimberly Thorpe

New York Times
Erica Gies

SAN FRANCISCO — Moore’s law, which has held true for more than 40 years, states that the number of transistors that can fit on an integrated circuit doubles approximately every two years. The world economy has reaped the benefits of this maxim, with ever-sleeker and more powerful electronics. But the phenomenon has also created up to 50 million metric tons annually of obsolete waste, according to the United Nations.

In February, Best Buy, the largest electronics retail chain in the United States, upgraded its take-back and recycling program to make it one of the most comprehensive in the country. The chain’s 1,028 U.S. stores now accept televisions with screens of up to 32 inches, or 81.3 centimeters; products with cathode ray tubes; monitors; laptops; cellphones and other consumer electronics. Items are accepted for free or the store levies a $10 charge, against which customers receive a $10 gift card.

A pick-up program takes larger items like console TVs and appliances.

While Staples, Office Depot, and other U.S. chains take back some electronics, they do not accept televisions. “It’s not comprehensive if you’re excluding an entire category of electronics, particularly one that is so challenging to recycle,” said Barbara B. Kyle, national coordinator for the Electronics TakeBack Coalition, which promotes responsible electronics recycling.

Manufacturer responsibility is also on the rise. A year ago, Sony was the only TV maker to take back its old sets: now five others do so — LG, Samsung, Panasonic, Toshiba, and Sharp. But most take delivery at their recycling partners’ locations, which are usually in industrial parts of town.

Best Buy’s program is likely to be more popular because takes back televisions at its stores, which are more convenient for most consumers. The chain currently accepts the cost of recycling these TVs, although it is negotiating with manufacturers over who should pay.

Accepting the waste is just a start. Electronic waste is often shipped to developing countries for recycling, a practice that environmentalists tried, with limited success, to outlaw in 1995 through the so-called BAN Amendment to the Basel Convention, an international treaty on hazardous waste disposal.

“We think export is not legitimate and needs to stop,” said Jim Puckett, executive director of the Basel Action Network, or BAN.

On May 12, the computer manufacturer Dell announced that it would not export any nonworking equipment to developing countries. “Dell is drawing a very sharp and bright line,” said Ms. Kyle. “It just cuts through the confusing jargon and nuance. That puts them at the head of the class.”

Still, Dell does not disclose its recycling partners. The TakeBack coalition is pushing for greater openness in recycling programs because “in an arena where there’s so much cheating going on, transparency helps improve some of that,” said Ms. Kyle.

Best Buy’s export policy is not as strict as Dell’s, but it has published on its Web site both its standards and its recycling partners.

Ms. Kyle said she was pleased to see the company’s efforts toward openness but was concerned about the vagueness of some statements, which, she said, left “wiggle room.” For example, she takes issue with Best Buy’s statement: “The dumping of electronic waste on developing countries should be prohibited.”

“Is Best Buy going to prohibit that?” she asked. “That’s a very different statement than saying, ‘We will make sure that our exports from our program do not go to developing countries.”’

A Best Buy spokeswoman, Kelly Groehler, clarified the published statement. “We do not condone the illegal dumping of materials in other countries,” Ms. Groehler said. “We will cease a relationship with any vendor that practices that.”

Auditing is vital to tracking waste on its path through multiple handlers. Best Buy recently hired the Shaw Group to conduct audits on its recycling partners. But these will be internal, rather than independent, third-party audits; and Best Buy does not intend to disclose the auditing methods.

“We’re not perfect at this,” Ms. Groehler said. “we realize we have got a long ways to go.”

AUSTIN – In preparation for the final transition to digital television on June 12, local and state government officials met with environmental activists at the state Capitol on Wednesday to support legislation that would make television manufacturers responsible for recycling of their products.

Zack Braunstein of the Texas Campaign for the Environment listens as speakers talk about a program to recycle televisions. (Andrew Rogers/The Daily Texan)

Two bills in the legislature stipulate that TV manufacturers must establish and be accountable for a television recycling plan to remove the burden of recycling from the local government and to ensure discarded televisions don’t end up in landfills.

The bills emulate the Computer TakeBack Law by mirroring its provision that retailers cannot sell the product without an approved recycling plan.

State Rep. David Leibowitz, the author of the House bill, said it was important to craft legislation to address the unique characteristics of televisions.

“The number of TVs that will be thrown away in the coming years is too great to ignore,” said Leibowitz, D-San Antonio. “The Computer TakeBack Law was a right step in the environmental responsibility and green direction, and the passage of the TV TakeBack Law will be a continuation of steps we took in the last session and put us in the right place.”

Robin Schneider, executive director of Texas Campaign for the Environment, said lead and other retardants in older televisions threaten to reach the water table when left in landfills. Schneider hopes that passage of the bill will encourage manufacturers to design more environmentally friendly televisions.

KVUE News: Green Right Now
Harriet Blake

E-waste is a dirty word to anyone who cares about the environment. With the constant upgrades consumers get with computers, cell phones and TVs, it’s no surprise that electronic waste is the fastest growing part of American waste. And on top of that, e-waste is often exported to undeveloped countries, where its toxicity is damaging to the those who live there.

Today, with the Feb. 17 deadline to convert to digital television approaching, there’s concern that the number of analog TVs dumped into landfills will grow exponentially. (The U.S. will stop broadcasting on analog airwaves and broadcast only in digital. Digital offers better picture and sound, as well as more channels.)

That’s why environmentalists were excited to learn last week that Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba announced that they are offering free recycling programs in all 50 states by the end of January. The announcement came at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

“Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba have come around to the product-take-back side,” said Jeff Jacoby, a spokesman for the Texas Campaign for the Environment that was involved in the TakeBack My TV campaign.

“We’re pleased they will have more collection sites than other companies, however there’s only two drop-offs in all of California,” says Jacoby. “That’s unacceptable. People are not going to drive that far. They will take the path of least resistance. So while we applaud these companies for taking a positive step, we also need to see them make an effort to get recycling to more consumers and do more responsible recycling.”

Responsible recycling means that the item goes to a responsible recycling facility. There are a number of companies that have taken the e-steward pledge which means they’ve signed a pledge not to export e-waste overseas and to document where it ends up. There’s been a lot concern that as much as 80 percent of America’s e-waste ends of overseas.

“In Texas, we have three e-steward companies,” says Jacoby. “They are: Intechra in Carrollton and ECS Refining in Terrell (both Dallas suburbs) and Corona Visions in San Antonio. Texas is in the middle of the pack as far as responsible recycling goes.”

When old electronics go to a responsible recycling center, they are first labeled with a bar code. If the item still works, it will be refurbished and resold, says Jacoby. If it works partially, the item is dismantled into components. The working components are then used to build other products. The parts that do not work and can’t be reused, are crushed up and sold as bulk metal or plastic.

“Good recyclers can recycle as much as 98 percent of an item,” says Jacoby.

The United States has yet to sign the Basel Convention which is a global treaty regulating the export of hazardous waste to developing countries. 60 Minutes and Time magazine recently reported that much of exported e-waste ends up in China, where lower-income residents recover the lead by heating circuit boards and burn off bits of gold by using acid. As a result, the residents are exposed to high levels of cancer-causing dioxins, which has been linked to an increase in miscarriages.

As for the upcoming digital television conversion, President-elect Obama is considering having it postponed.

“We’d be extremely pleased if Obama does this,” says Jacoby. “Until there is a comprehensive recycling program in place, a government-mandated planned obsolesence needs to be postponed.”

Such a postponment, he says, will give more time to TV manufacturers to start recycling programs. It will also allow Congress time to pass legislation ending the export of toxic e-waste to developing countries.

Popular Science
Abby Seiff

Almost one year ago to the day, at a CES where energy-efficient gadgets were touted strictly for how eco-friendly they were and not for their budget-consciousness, three of the industry’s giants announced a joint e-waste recycling venture. In tough times it is not only the extras that go but the things that are deemed not strictly necessary in that we did not have them before and we managed more or less. E-waste recycling could have become one of those things, indeed still might, but at least at this year’s show it looks like the foothold it gained in years past is solid.

The biggest booths all boast sections now devoted not simply to the newest line of greener products, but to the company’s e-waste initiatives. As for last year’s recycling venture, the Electronics Manufacturers Recycling Management Company (formed by Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba) has shown reasonable growth.

MRM claims more than 280 locations to drop off consumer electronics, at least one in each state. Sony has a similar program; and each company has at least a few of its own initiatives under way. Toshiba’s Green Program pays you to recycle. Ship them your garbage-bound gadget (made by any company) and they’ll pay you the trade-in value. Panasonic recently launched a nationwide program aimed at increasing the number of recycling drop off points across the country. And Sony says they’re aiming for a “pound-for-pound” initiative—one pound recycled for each pound of electronics created (though, no goal date on that one).

The poor economy, all say, has had no effect on the budget allocated to e-waste management programs. “We’ve made a commitment to this,” says Mark Sharp, [a TK] with Panasonic’s Corporate Environmental Department. “We’re not turning back just because times are tight.”

What the recession might affect, paradoxically, is the previously-predicted influx of junked TVs come February. Slacker or luddite analog-TV owners, could have, presumably, used next month’s digital-to-analog broadcast conversion as an excuse to replace an old television, potentially overwhelming recycling centers unprepared for the glut of toxin-laden sets. Instead, it’s likely many more will opt to hang on to the old set a while longer, adding just a set-top converter. This leaves centers in a better spot, though critics still insist more companies should be taking a proactive stance on recycling TVs. At CES, protesters with the Electronics TakeBack Coalition roamed the street dressed liked zombie televisions, speaking out against a slew of companies who have failed to implement adequate television take-back policies in the face of the signal conversion.

Photo: Abby Seiff, Popular Science

At the Toshiba booth, a British spokesperson marveled over the company’s green initiatives: “In Europe there’s government directives, but in the states it’s far more voluntary.” And indeed, it is commendable how the industry has begun to take it upon itself to ensure that its products are less harmful at both ends of life. But perhaps there’s something to be said for “directives”.

BBC News
Maggie Shiels

Zombie protesters at CES ’09: Campaigners say more should be done to recycle old TVs

Campaigners are warning of a flood of toxic waste from old TVs and have called on manufacturers to do more to recycle them. The Electronics TakeBack Coalition (ETBC) took their protest to the world’s biggest electronics show in Las Vegas.

Protesters, dressed like zombies, were at CES to highlight the potential health risks from dumped TVs.

“TVs are full of toxic materials and they live on, even when you throw them away,” said ETBC’s Barbara Kyle.

The ETBC estimates that monitors and televisions contain an average 3.62kg of lead, which can be very toxic, especially to children.

“An average home has two or three televisions per household,” Ms Kyle added.

“The US Environment Protection Agency says there are 99 million unused stored TVs in the US. They are unused and sitting there stored in the closet.”

TV Tax

The coalition also produced a “report card” to highlight which companies have dealt with TV waste well and which have not. While Sony was top of the list for being the first to introduce a voluntary programme to take back waste, most, like JVC, Mitsubishi, and Hitachi, were given a failing grade for having no scheme at all.

Ms Kyle said manufacturers have a long road ahead.

“We want this industry to step up and make it easy for consumers to find a responsible recycling programme to take their TVs back and not throw them in the trash.”

New York State Assembly member William Colton, chair of the Legislative Committee on Solid Waste management, has suggested a tax on TV makers to hold them responsible for materials going into their products.

“If we can tax soda based on the claim that it is increasing childhood obesity, than we can tax manufacturers for their production of harmful metals in electronics, which, if leeched into the air or water, can cause developmental problems in children if they are exposed,” said Mr Colton.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said this week its recycling program, eCycling, collected and recycled close to 31,000 tonnes of used electronics in 2008, nearly a 30% increase over 2007. That includes computer waste as well as televisions.

EPA under fire

Meanwhile, the US Government Accountability Office late last year lambasted the EPA and electronics recycling efforts in general. It said many American companies were dumping everything from cell phones and old computers to televisions in countries such as China and India, where disposal practices were dangerous to people and the environment.

The coalition’s protest at CES comes ahead of the changeover from an analogue to digital TV signal in America next month, which will lead to millions of analogue TVs will become obsolete.

Ms Kyle predicting they will end up in landfill sites.

“Lots and lots of TVs will be thrown away with the switchover and we want the companies that are trying to persuade everyone to buy new sets to take them back and recycle them,” she said.

“It’s time to take responsibility and follow the lead of the computer companies with free take-back programmes. It’s time to step up and be counted.”