Electronic Waste Disposal

Where does my e-waste go after it leaves the recycling facility?

Your e-waste goes to the classic recyclers and smelters around the world, and therefore ends up at the OEMs, the original equipment manufacturers, who reuse all the commodities that leave our facility.

What happens to my old TV when I recycle it?

Your old TV comes into our facility and is bar-coded. It then goes through the de-manufacturing process where we strip down the plastics and then separate the CRT monitor which is crushed, take off the metal cords and put them in separate bins, and therefore then bale the plastics together, put the crushed glass with the crushed glass, and then bale the other metals and separate the metals into steel, copper, gold, and other metals for reuse.

What happens to the circuit boards on my computer?

Circuit boards are recycled just like all other parts of electronic waste. The metals are stripped in a proprietary method. The boards are recycled in a proprietary methodology and all of it is reused. And remember, electronic waste is the highest level recycling paradigm in the recycling world because everything in electronics is reusable, and reuse is the essence of great recycling.

What happens to the plastics from electronics?

Plastics are stripped off of all electronics and then put in a certain bin, and then eventually baled and sold to the plastic recyclers around the world for future re-use into brand new products.

Are electronic waste facilities regulated under federal law?

Electronic waste recycling facilities are highly regulated, not only under federal law but also under the states of they exist in and the jurisdictions they exist in. So, there is no state and no jurisdiction that lets a recycling facility go into business without regulating it and periodically and regularly and random check ups on that facility. So E-waste recycling facilities are highly regulated and watched over and that's good for the recycling facilities who are doing the right things, because when you run your recycling facility transparently for the world to see, it's going to be more successful then the others out there.

What are the penalties for improper e-waste disposal?

The penalties for improper e-waste disposal vary. Unfortunately, some states and some jurisdictions are yet to have any penalties. The Federal Government has their own types of penalties. In California, they have their own types of penalties on what to do, from shutting down a facility, to fining a facility, eventually criminally charging the owners of that facility. The penalties are all across the board depending on where that facility sits, and whose jurisdiction it is in.

Why should I be concerned about the proper disposal of my e-waste?

We all live in one world and one environment. So whether you're watching this video in Spain, Germany, London, New York, or California, or in Shanghai, we all have one environment and it's up to us to take care of it. The appropriate disposal of electronic waste - which is the fastest growing solid waste stream in the world - is paramount to us preserving our environment and passing on a legacy of a better environment to our children and grandchildren than we inherited. We cannot continue to further liquidate the environment by disposing all the wonderful gadgets and technology that makes our life better on this earth everyday inappropriately. We have to get with the program and get rid of our e-waste in an environmentally friendly way. We're out of time. The moment of truth is here.