N.J. DEP Seeking Comments from Public on Developing Electronic Scrap Recycling Rules

The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is seeking comments on rules it has drafted for the development of a statewide system of recycling computers and television sets.

"Recycling is a priority of the DEP, and getting more of this electronic material out of the waste stream is important to that effort,'' says Bob Martin, DEP commissioner.

"Because of the great deal of public interest and the significant increase in the generation of this type of waste in recent years, the DEP is going above and beyond its normal rulemaking process by giving the public, environmental advocates, businesses and manufacturers of covered electronic devices an opportunity to provide comments before we formally propose regulations," Martin adds.

The Electronic Waste Management Act being developed by the DEP bans the disposal of televisions and personal or portable computers in the regular waste stream starting Jan. 1, 2011. It requires manufacturers of these devices to establish and finance a free system for collecting and recycling this material.

The law does not cover cell phones, DVD players, VCRs, game consoles or electronic devices such as radios or television sets found in automobiles, though some county and municipal programs, nonprofit community service agencies and businesses that sell electronic devices do collect these, the DEP notes.

The DEP says it anticipates that manufacturers will develop collection programs through partnerships with county and municipal governments. Currently, all New Jersey counties and more than 180 municipalities have electronic scrap collection and recycling programs.

The DEP has proposed draft regulations that set up a registration system for manufacturers of electronic devices covered by the law as well as the requirements for the development of required manufacturer collection and recycling plans.

The draft regulations establish methodologies for the department to use to determine market shares for television manufacturers and return shares based on weight for other covered electronic devices for the purposes of apportioning responsibility for program costs.

The draft rules and a list of electronics recycling facilities are available at www.nj.gov/dep/dshw/recycling/Electronic_Waste/index.html.

The DEP will accept comments on the draft rules until Nov. 15. Comments may be sent to ecycle@dep.state.nj.us.