Consumer Electronics - Personal Choice vs Public Policy

We are poisoning communities around the world with our used electronics. Shipping toxic trash to developing nations in order to defer the cost of true recycling and responsible management of our waste stream.

As broadcast media giants implement the national conversion to a digital standard, an opportunity is being lost. Estimates are that 1 million Americans are unprepared and will loose signal today at the time of the switch. While I hardly think a day (or a life) without TV is a tragedy, a real tragedy has been unfolding. The unsafe disposal of all those screens that don't support the new digital signal is a disaster.

This is one of those issues that we consumers have been sweeping under the rug, passing the buck to administrators who are not acting in the best interests of the environment and causing real suffering in the name of 'recycling'. The safe disposal of electronics is a sham, in most cases, although many municipalities and retailers seem to be taking credit for a responsible approach to the problem.

All over the country we can participate in "green collection events" or "recycle drop-off points" administered by well-meaning public servants. These events purport to offer us a guilt-free way to get rid of the highly toxic trash generated by our plugged-in lifestyles. Far too often, however, these poisinous products of affluence are merely collected and then shipped overseas to developing countries that lack the means to deal with them safely. We are asking these impoverished communities to clean up our mess, and they are suffering catastrophic health and environmental effects because of it. Most of us would prefer a better solution.

That is why Greenpeace has advocated, as they often do, for corporate accountability for this mess. The manufacturers of these devices need to take responsibility at three critical points in the lifespan of the product.

First - get toxic materials out of the product during the design/manufacturing phase. This makes them less hazardous to the user and much safer/easier/cheaper to recycle, when the time comes.
Second - establish effective, comprehensive take-back programs that are simple to manage and participate in. If it has your brand on it, the consumer should be able to return it to you. This will increase the chances that the materials will be properly handled, or even re-used at the end of the product life cycle.
Third - engage in honest self-monitoring and public reporting of the process, including accurate assessments of the toxic and carbon footprint of the manufacturing process and the waste generated by production.

For more information about the solutions Greenpeace is proposing, please visit this report on the conditions in Ghana:

http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/news/poisoning-the-poor

Then download and use the "Green Electronics Buying Guide" that helps to identify companies that are using better business and social practices.

http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/campaigns/toxics/hi-tech-highly-toxic/company-report-card