Foreword
Electronic waste, or e-waste, includes products such as computers, keyboards, monitors, printers, televisions, cell phones, data storage devices, and VCR/DVD players- just about anything with a circuit board or power cord. Even though e-waste currently comprises less than 4% of the total solid waste stream in the United States, it’s been estimated that the volume of e-waste is increasing 2 to 3 times faster than other waste streams (e.g. paper or yard waste). For example, 490 million personal computers were retired between 2000 and 2005, and the number is expected to increase to 955 million between 2005 and 2010. The recycling rate of electronic products, on the other hand, was only about 10% in 2003. Thus there is a rising amount of e-waste with only a tenth of it being managed in a way that helps to prevent pollution and romote resource conservation.
The sheer quantity of e-waste is not the only issue. Many electronic products contain potentially hazardous or toxic materials, and these can end up harming the environment if not managed properly. Materials such as cadmium, mercury, chromium, brominated flame retardants in plastics, and lead in cathode ray tubes and solder are especially dangerous.
In addition to environmental impacts, data security is a major issue for businesses that store personally identifiable information on their computers. Understanding the applicable regulations regarding the disposal of electronic products can reduce a company’s liability in light of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA 45 CFR Parts 160, 162 and 164) of 1996 and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 H.R. 3763), which may apply to businesses that deal with health data or financial data, respectively. And businesses that do not deal with such data are still likely to be concerned with protecting the privacy of their company’s, customers', and employees’ information.
Download: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
Download: Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
The familiar mantra of "reduce, reuse, and recycle," as is often seen with the three chasing arrows symbol, is the ideal path for the life of many business and consumer goods, including electronics. Reducing the total quantity of equipment we buy, with a particular focus on reducing our purchase of products containing hazardous materials, is the first step toward decreasing our environmental footprint. Reusing is the second and recycling is the last alternative. This resource kit provides information on the entire lifecycle of electronics and contains useful information to help you address your e-waste concerns.