July 20,2011
New federal e-scrap policy announced
Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lisa Jackson joined the heads of the General
Services Administration, the White House Council on Environmental Quality and the CEOs of
Dell, Sprint and Sony to unveil a new federal strategy to promote electronics recycling.
Speaking at Round2's e-scrap processing facility in Austin, Texas, Jackson and others outlined a
set of new policies, based on recommendations made by the Obama Administration's Federal
Electronics Stewardship Working Group, convened last November. Representing a partnership
between the federal government, OEMs and e-scrap processors, some highlights from the new
policy direct the government to do the following:
Encourage the development of more efficient and sustainable electronics and direct federal
agencies to procure and recycle their electronics responsibly. The federal government is the
largest single consumer of electronics and wields enormous purchasing power. Using the new
guidelines, the GSA will remove products from its purchase contracts that do not meet
environmental and efficiency guidelines – specifically, products that do not meet Energy Star
and EPEAT requirements, and/or ones that are not designed for recycling. The GSA is also
directed to use certified electronics processors or manufacturer take-back programs for all
non-functional equipment disposal. A landfill ban is also in effect for all federal IT equipment.
Support recycling options for consumers. Dell, Sprint and Sony were all on-hand at the July
20 announcement to jointly announce their commitment to electronics recycling options in the
consumer space. With half the nation's states now implementing electronics recycling
programs, and all of those – except California – relying on some form of extended producer
responsibility, the participation of OEMs and retailers is critical to successful electronics
recycling expansion. The new policies encourage companies to voluntarily adopt similar
environmental and efficiency guidelines for their consumer products, to those used by the GSA.
Support research on electronics recycling. The policy urges the development of competitive
grant processes and design competitions to further the development of domestic electronics
recycling infrastructure, and improve product design. The official report did not mention HR
2396 introduced by Congressman John Sarbanes (D-Maryland), which would create a similar
grant system. However, it did cite growing concerns over rare earth metal supplies as an
imperative to develop new reclamation technologies.
Strengthen the U.S. role in international electronics stewardship. Perhaps the biggest
announcement of the day was the recommendation that the government support ratification of
the Basel Convention. If it moves forward, the move would be a boon for those who advocate
for tighter controls on the international movement of electronic scrap. More broadly, the
policy also lends the official support of the government to both the R2 and e-Stewards
standards, and to other accredited, regularly-audited certification programs for electronics
recycling. Under this new policy, the EPA will increase its efforts to encourage companies to
become certified. Additionally, it opens the door to possible regulatory changes to improve
compliance with the CRT Rule and other export regulations.
Reaction from the electronics recycling industry was swift, with the Institute of Scrap Recycling
Industries praising the Obama Administration for "concrete, practical steps to address how the
U.S. will manage its used and end-of-life electronics." ISRI also said the new policies were in
line with ones the organization is currently pursuing and applauded the emphasis on recycling
job creation.
In comments made before the announcement, the Basel Action Network voiced its approval
that the government would be encouraging the expansion of certification standards. BAN
oversees the e-Stewards standard. The R2 standard was developed by industry stakeholders and
facilitated by the EPA.