E-Waste Recycling Gaining Momentum in Massachusetts

The Massachusetts Natural Resources Committee recommended passage of House Bill 4535, which requires "electronic waste" containing cathode ray tubes to be recycled and disposed of by the manufacturer rather than by cities and towns.

CRTs are a key part of many electronic products including television sets, computers, video cameras and video game machines. Supporters said this would help the environment and save millions of dollars for cities and towns and/or consumers who are sometimes charged by communities to dispose of these products.

Some industry leaders object a piecemeal state approach and favor federal legislation developing a national plan that includes allowing manufacturers to add a fee to the sale price of the product in order to defray the recycling costs.

The bill received a favorable report from the National Resources Committee late last month. From there the bill has been moved to the Massachusetts House Ways & Means Committee.

In its present form the bill does not stipulate the procedures needed to be performed by the manufacturers; rather, it calls on manufacturers to take responsibility to develop a method to collect and recycling the CRTs.

A spokeswoman for the Natural Resources Committee says that a similar bill was recently passed in California.