Posts Tagged ‘electronics’
E-Waste: The Dirty Secret of Recycling Electronics
July 25th, 2009 | 
Author: 
In Depth October 15, 2008, 7:39PM EST text size: TT
Lax rules and weak enforcement allow scrap companies to profit by sending junked computers, printers, and TVs overseas
Business is booming at Supreme Asset Management & Recovery, one of the nation’s largest recyclers of electronic waste. Inside a cavernous warehouse in the industrial section of Lakewood, N.J., workers in T-shirts grapple with newly arrived truckloads of old computer monitors, keyboards, printers, and TVs: tons of e-waste that contains dangerous lead, mercury, and cadmium. Such major manufacturers as Panasonic and JVC and municipalities like Baltimore County, Md., and Westchester County, N.Y., have paid Supreme to dispose of their digital detritus, relying on the company’s assurances that the work is done safely.
But as the e-waste industry proliferates—some 1,200 mostly tiny companies generated revenue of more than $3 billion last year—it has also become enmeshed in questionable practices that undercut its environmentally friendly image. Next year the volume of e-waste will probably surge. In February, U.S. consumers must switch from analog to digital television service, a move that is expected to result in the mass junking of analog TVs.
“No Accountability”
Seven former Supreme employees told BusinessWeek in interviews that they knew about the company selling large monitor shipments overseas. Despite the sales offerings on the Internet and the accounts of its former employees, Supreme says flatly that it “is not an exporter” of e-waste. The phrasing of its statement leaves open the possibility that others export the materials. But Supreme adds that to its knowledge, all of its buyers behave lawfully.
(page 2 of 2)
Varkonyi, 63, describes himself as a middleman for recyclers who, he says, want to tell their corporate and municipal clients that they don’t export PCs or other potentially hazardous gear: “I buy stuff from other recyclers who then claim that they do not export anything.” Varkonyi won’t name his customers.
Business is booming at Supreme Asset Management & Recovery, one of the nation’s largest recyclers of electronic waste. Inside a cavernous warehouse in the industrial section of Lakewood, N.J., workers in T-shirts grapple with newly arrived truckloads of old computer monitors, keyboards, printers, and TVs: tons of e-waste that contains dangerous lead, mercury, and cadmium. Such major manufacturers as Panasonic and JVC and municipalities like Baltimore County, Md., and Westchester County, N.Y., have paid Supreme to dispose of their digital detritus, relying on the company’s assurances that the work is done safely.
But as the e-waste industry proliferates—some 1,200 mostly tiny companies generated revenue of more than $3 billion last year—it has also become enmeshed in questionable practices that undercut its environmentally friendly image. Next year the volume of e-waste will probably surge. In February, U.S. consumers must switch from analog to digital television service, a move that is expected to result in the mass junking of analog TVs.
For the full article, follow the link below.
Link:
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_43/b4105000160974.htm
Electronics Reuse and Recycling
| Contact: Lucy Doroshko 517-373-1322 |
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Computers, cell phones, printers and other peripherals are part of the business and educational landscape of our society. We rely on them daily to communicate, educate and conduct business. What happens to these tools when we replace them with newer, faster models? Donating is becoming a common practice for extending the life of working electronics but eventually they will no longer be valuable as products. What do we do with these obsolete electronics as well as our broken televisions, radios, and stereos? DELETE THE DATA: Before donating or recycling your old computer or other electronic device, make sure that the data in it is completely deleted. Reformatting the hard drive or deleting files may not be enough. You need to completely destroy the data on your hard drive. The U.S. EPA has two fact sheets developed in 2006 that provide information about donating and a list of free software you can use to delete information from your computer. See “Do the PC Thing …” under “How to Donate” at http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/conserve/plugin/pcthing.htm IS IT HAZARDOUS? Many electronics contain hazardous materials such as lead in solder, cadmium in circuit boards and mercury in batteries. Most older computer display screens and televisions contain cathode ray tubes (CRT’s). CRT’s contain leaded glass to protect the user from the x-rays inside the tubes. Lead is a hazardous material that can cause environmental and health damage if not managed safely. Lead in CRT’s cause computers to be considered hazardous waste when disposed by regulated generators in Michigan. Residents are exempt from hazardous waste regulations. Regulated or not, Michigan residents are concerned that their old computer will end up in their local landfill or municipal solid waste incinerator with the potential of leaching or emitting lead and other heavy metals into the water or air. This has caused many communities in Michigan and around the country to hold electronic waste collection events where materials are gathered for shipment to recyclers who dismantle, sort and recycle the various glass, plastic and metal components. There is still much we do not know about what is actually hazardous in all of our electronic tools and toys. Click “back” to find information to help you manage your used electronics, whether you are a business generating regulated hazardous waste or a resident with a used computer or cell phone. Link: http://www.michigan.gov/deq/0,1607,7-135-3585_4130_18096-43363–,00.html |
GEEP International and Techway Services Announce Joint Venture
Published: September 17,2007
DALLAS, Texas – Sept. 17 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — Techway Services, Inc. (www.techwayservices.com), Techway Service, Inc. of Dallas, Texas and GEEP International of Nevada (www.geepinc.com) have formed a joint venture company called GEEP Texas. The joint venture is part of GEEP International’s plan to create the largest electronics recycling and End-of-Life (EOL) IT services companies in North America.
The joint venture involves technology and asset transfers between the two companies. GEEP International will design, finance and install advanced eScrap processing equipment at the new GEEP Texas headquarters facility in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. This capital investment is valued at over $4,000,000 (USD). In return, Techway Services will share its industry leading data destruction processes and technologies. At the operations level, Techway Services will continue as a stand alone company offering complete IT asset disposal services while processing all eScrap worldwide through GEEP’s ISO certified facilities.
The GEEP Dallas/Ft. Worth plant will be the first of several new GEEP facilities slated to open across North America by the spring of 2008. These new geographically dispersed computer recycling centers, in addition to GEEP’s current North Carolina and Ontario facilities, will greatly reduce logistics costs for current and future clients such as OEM manufacturers, municipalities and Fortune 1000 companies.
About Techway Services
Techway Services, Inc. a nationally recognized provider of end-of-life (EOL) IT services for corporations, government entities, universities, and channel partners. Techway Services provides a full range of EOL services that include reverse logistics, computer remarketing, computer recycling, and electronic data destruction solutions. Techway Services is a certified Woman owned business and is also HUB certified in the state of Texas.
About GEEP
Global Electric Electronic Processing Inc. is the industry leader for eScrap recycling in North America, with state-of-the-art recycling facilities and advanced processing equipment. GEEP facilities are ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001 registered and GEEP is committed to achieving a zero landfill objective. GEEP’s clients include telecommunication service providers, manufacturers and electric utility companies in both Canada and the United States.
Posted in Computer Recycling | 
Tags: data destruction, electronics, End of Life, GEEP, recycling | 
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Latest Recycling News
Recycler dumps toxic electronics around the world
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
May 28, 2009
After tracking hazardous waste shipments and dumping around the world, a national environmental group has sounded the alarm about a million pounds of old electronics innocently donated in Pennsylvania.
Basel Action Network contends that the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society and Allegheny County, Pa., should have known that a free electronics recycling program was too good to be true. The environmental group this week issued a report claiming that EarthEcycle — which collected more than 1 million pounds of old electronics through the Humane Society’s recycling campaign in March and April — ships hazardous waste to countries where it will most likely end up in toxic dumping grounds.
» Click here to view article (By KARAMAGI RUJUMBA, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Recycling Council of Ontario recognizes GEEP.
| Article: Recycling Council of Ontario recognizes GEEP.(Global Electric Electronic Processing)(Brief article) Article from:Recycling Today Article date:December 1, 2006 |
Global Electric Electronic Processing (GEEP), headquartered in Barrie, Ontario, was presented with a silver award for Waste Diversion Program Operator at this year’s Ontario Waste Minimization Awards held recently in Toronto. The Recycling Council of Ontario presents the annual award.
GEEP has introduced technology known as the ERP I system, which is in full production at its Barrie facility.
With ERP I, non-disassembled electric and electronic products are shredded by a heavy-duty crusher. Coarse ferrous and nonferrous parts are taken out automatically, while hand-picking stations are used to remove additional valuable fractions, such as motors, …
