California E-Waste Recycling Bill Advances to Senate Floor

Legislation that would require the recycling of toxic electronic waste and prevent it from being exported to developing nations passed the California Senate Appropriations Committee this week.

Senate Bill 20, by Senator Byron Sher (D-Stanford), would require manufacturers of toxic electronics sold in California to develop and finance a free and convenient system for recycling their devices when their useful life has ended.

The bill also prohibits manufacturers or their agents from exporting electronic waste to any foreign nation unless they demonstrate that all hazardous devices sent to foreign destinations will be handled in a manner that is at least as protective of public health and the environment as laws and regulations require in this state; and that the importation of the waste is not prohibited by the country of destination.

Hazardous electronics are those devices containing toxic levels of lead, mercury, cadmium or other hazardous materials as determined by DTSC, and their collection and disposal with solid waste is prohibited.

DTSC has determined that the cathode ray tubes in most computer monitors and televisions contain hazardous levels of lead, and most fluorescent lamps contain hazardous levels of mercury. The department is also examining other electronic devices. The legislation specifies that, as DTSC bans new devices from landfills because of hazardous content, the new law will cover them.

\Mark Murray, executive director of Californians Against Waste, the state’s largest recycling advocacy organization and sponsor of both last year and this year’s e-waste bills, said, “It is no exaggeration to call this a crisis.

 “There are roughly six million obsolete television sets and computer monitors in people’s homes, attics and garages that people literally don’t know what to do with. Ten thousand more become obsolete everyday in California,” Murray said. “If we leave this mess for local government to clean up, it’s going to cost taxpayers over a billion dollars. It’s time to require manufacturers to take responsibility for these products.”

Under SB 20, manufacturers that wish to sell electronic products that contain toxic materials in California would be required to develop a plan, approved by the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB), for the collection, handling, transportation, processing, recovery, reuse and recycling of their devices. Manufacturers could also choose to opt out of the system by paying a fee equal to the real cost of collection and recycling on each device sold.

Fees and fines collected under the program would be used to further enhance the e-waste recycling efforts through financial incentives and public education.

SB 20 will next be heard on the Senate Floor.