Consumer Electronics Association Introduces eCycling Leadership Initiative

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), Arlington, Va., has announced the launch of an initiative designed to sharply increase the amount of electronics collected for recycling. The CEA says the goal of the eCycling Leadership Initiative is to recycle 1 billion pounds of electronics per year by 2016, which would triple the volume of electronics collected for recycling in 2010.

Steps the CEA says it will take to promote its recycling goals include improving consumer awareness of the more than 5,000 collection sites currently sponsored by the electronics industry; increasing the amount of electronics recycled responsibly; increasing the number of collection opportunities available; and providing transparent metrics on electronics recycling efforts.

“The launch of the eCycling Leadership Initiative is a watershed moment in the history of electronics recycling in the United States,” says Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the CEA. “Our members have been on the forefront of eCycling advancements, and today a forward-thinking industry is challenging itself to go even further.”

The CEA says the eCycling Leadership Initiative is a collaboration among consumer electronics manufacturers, retailers, collectors, recyclers, non-governmental organizations and governments at all levels, coordinated by the CEA.

“The billion-pound challenge is about both the quality and quantity of electronics recycling,” says Walter Alcorn, CEA’s vice president of environmental affairs and industry sustainability. “But we won’t stop at a billion pounds. The eCycling Leadership initiative is an ongoing, permanent initiative that will follow the best practices and commitment of industry, including practices that prohibit the use of recyclers and downstream processors who dump end-of-life electronics in developing nations.”

CEA adds that it also supports the movement toward third-party recycler certification and encourages more recycling in such facilities. Specific to the eCycling Leadership Initiative, the consumer electronics industry supports the voluntary implementation of recycler certification systems so that the collected material is recycled in third-party certified facilities.

“This unique industry-led approach transcends the patchwork of current state recycling regulations with an aggressive set of industry goals and standards,” Alcorn adds. “Through the eCycling Leadership Initiative, the consumer electronics industry is moving toward a national solution and away from the costly and confusing patchwork of state regulations.”

The CEA says a major component of the initiative will be consumer education, including online tools and mobile apps, to help make recycling used electronics as easy as buying new ones. The eCycling Leadership Initiative will working with state and local governments and charities to add collection sites.

To enhance the initiative’s transparency and accountability, CEA will issue an annual national progress report that will measure the growth of electronics recycling, using 2010 as a baseline. Additionally, as part of the eCycling Leadership Initiative, CEA will report on the capacity and performance of recycler third-party certification systems. Such a report will review progress during the startup phase for third-party certification systems and provide the basis for future consumer electronics industry commitments regarding third-party certified recyclers.

More information on the eCycling Leadership Initiative, as well as details on consumer electronics industry recycling programs, is available at http://apps.ce.org/ecycler/index.html.