June 2009 Newsbrief
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The Basel Action Network reports on another incident where materials are exported to and cause harm to workers and the environment. As detailed in the New York Times, an electronic recycling company is promoting
a fundraiser to charities where they pay charities to host free electronic recycling
events. Tulsa, OK based EarthECycle pays the charities a set amount for each
100,000 pounds of electronics they collect.
EarthECycle presents this as a win-win situation for the charities, recyclers and
those who eventually receive the electronics.
Responsible recyclers have a hard time believing that it is possible to profitably recycle
electronics for free and be able to pay the charities a commission.
The Basel Action Network (BAN) tracked the shipments of two collection events
recently held in western Pennsylvania. Containers were shipped from EarthECycle warehouses in Pittsburgh to
Newark, NJ. From there the containers were sent overseas to Hong Kong and South Africa.
It is apparant that EarthECycle is brokering their electronic waste to the highest bidder
overseas. This can hardly be what the charities and those participating in the event believed was
going to happen to their electronics.
However, this practice is not necessarily illegal. Federal regulations only pertain to the shipping of
cathode ray tubes, not to general electronics. Some countries also have regulations limiting what can
legally be exported to their country, though enforcement is rather lax.
The simple truth is it costs money to responsibly recycle the hazardous wastes
associated with electronic trash.
While it is legal for companies to export hazardous electronic waste overseas,
it is by no stretch of the imagination responsible recycling. The only way to know
your electronics are going to be ethically recycled is to look for companies who
are certifed by BAN as e-Stewards.
For more information, see the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's coverage of this incident
as well.
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