E-waste Conversations #1 of ....

I have started interviewing several people that work in the end of the E-waste stream. While I am going to leave their names out since I thought of this after the interviews, I am sure they would be will to talk with interested parties. Please contact me to connect you.

The first interview was with a recycling coordinator. This business does processes (sorts, disassembles, and reuses) working and non-work equipment before it goes on to its final process (crushed, shredded, recycled, heated, melted, and incinerated). I chose this position because they have a unique view of the supply chain. They deal with the consumer and final processor, as well as the state regulations. We did the tour and initial conversation about where it was going and the process, pretty smooth considering (yet we are in Portland were there is above average buy-in for e-waste recycling). My notebook filled up when we started talking about challenges, at first they were slow in coming other than the usual issue with plastic. In plastic recycling one typically needs all one type to recycle it, which is a challenge when a printer or computer has 18 different types of plastic mixed throughout it. Most of which is recoverable, just time consuming. It is the junk plastic that spoils a batch and has trouble finding a recycling home. Agri-plas an Oregon plastic recycling company filled that niche nicely.

The other issues are also mostly around items that are difficult to find a recycling home for. These include: microwaves, copiers (the toner is hazardous), batteries (alkaline, button cells, and lithium), Compact Fluorescent and tubular Fluorescent bulbs (mercury), flat screen tv’s and monitors (again mercury), and anything with refrigerant in them. Not a small list, but at least a place to focus future interviews. And the last issue was space, they can process it all. That is rather than the small 10-20% of consumer e-waste that is dropped at a recycling center, 100% of the e-waste can be processed, but it takes time and space to sort all that “waste”. It would offer up jobs too. There is a catch.

There is always a catch, while it could all be processed (and in a fairly environmentally manner to boot, infinitely more environmental than going to the landfill) this time and space cost money. So does the processing, yes their are some recoverable outputs of the final processing (precocious metals, plastics, fuels, ash, and more) but it is this time and space consuming processing that is the bottle neck or point of leverage in this system.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and ideas on this bottle neck and on the issue items for processing.