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National PC Recycling Plan Proposed, Again
ThinSkin writes "Two U.S. Representatives have proposed a bill to resuscitate a national recycling program for electronic waste, following the successful launch of two state-run programs. The bill would create the National Computer Recycling Act, and if approved by Congress and signed into law, would tack on a $10 administrative fee to the sale price of computers and monitors to fund recycling efforts."
I am not exactly a materials engineer, but I believe that many of the plastic components, PCBs, etc., release extremely toxic fumes when burned. Now, maybe they can be melted safely at below burning temperature, and maybe I'm just totally off-base. But most of my little burning experiments as a misguided youth were geared towards less smelly things than electronics.
These aren't simple hydrocarbons though. A lot of the stuff won't even melt. Other things will react nastily. Some stuff can burn, i.e.: fiberglass. What would they do with the electrolytes, the ceramic, the fiberglass, etc.?
Four problems I can think of off the top of my head:
- Computers are not meltable. Circuit boards don't melt (at least not at any reasonable temperature). So there's going to be a lot of debris.
- Melting computers would require a lot of energy. Weigh the environmental costs of burning a ton of coal vs burrying a dozen computers.
- The resulting pools of liquid wouldn't be very pure. Not if one is relying on gravity to do the separation. To do a better job you'd need to use a centrifuge. Note that many chemicals of different densities like to bond to each other.
- Plastics and other low-temperature volatiles would vapourize before one melted steel. So you'd be venting toxic fumes. That means you'd need a big air-purification system.
Just some thoughts. I'm sure others will think of others. But it's an interesting suggestion.See here for a brief summary of the toxicity of old electronics parts. There is plenty of toxic heavy metals in the components.
Also note:
(3) the term `central processing unit' includes a case and all of its contents, such as the primary printed circuit board and its components, additional printed circuit boards, one or more disc drives, a transformer, interior wire, and a power cord;
And:
(e) ADDITIONAL EXEMPTION- The Administrator may exempt from the requirement of a fee under this section any sale made under a contract or an arrangement that the Administrator determines is likely to result in the maximum reuse of significant components of the computer, monitor, or device, and the disposal of the remaining components--
(1) in an environmentally sound and responsible manner;
(2) without violation of any Federal or State law; and
(3) without reliance on funding from State or local governments,
when the computer, monitor, or device is no longer of use to the end-user.
(f) DESIGNATION OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES- The Administrator may designate additional electronic devices to which the fee under subsection (a) shall apply if those electronic devices--
(1) contain a significant amount of material that, when disposed of, would be hazardous waste; and
(2) include one or more liquid crystal displays, cathode ray tubes, or circuit boards.
So, basically right now, only full systems seem to be called "a computer" (i.e. your standard Dell/HP/Gateway, etc., pizza box/tower). But they reserve the right for parts to later be specified, basically anything with a circuit board or LCD.
We were all warned a long time ago that MS products sucked, remember the Magic 8 Ball said, "Outlook not so good"
It would be easy to avoid such arbitrary levies, and to avoid governmental programs altogether. We just need more community driven projects like Portland's Free Geek.
The $10 levy is just like every other well-intentioned-sounding tax. It will end up being a money grab, the funds from which will never be used for the program's stated purpose.
-- "It was as if the paint factories had decided to deal direct with the art galleries." - Thursday Next
Close, but no cigar. Oil is seperated into different parts by Fractional distillation, which evaporates the oil and then condenses it at different temperature levels. In the case of metal, you can't just melt it down and skim off at different levels. It would never settle, due to the heat convection. You'd need to evaporate the metal and condense it, which would take a not insignificant amount of energy.. Nice idea though.
Depends on where you live...
From here:
Freecycling is a great way to get rid of an old computer that you don't want. Check out http://www.freecycle.org/ for a group in your area.
You do realize that most of those are just getting stripped overseas in harsh inhuman chemically-polluting factories, right? I mean, why would someone need a 486 when they don't have electricity? You strip them for heavy metals with workers that dip them by hand into vats of heavy acids, remove anything that solidifies out, and pour the waste into the river, with big piles of melty plastic junk piled up by the side of the road. You then sell the metal for more than you paid for the computer. This is usually how it goes, and this is why environmentalists don't like selling old computers overseas: the environmental damage of stripping something improperly is tremendous.
The ______ Agenda
Silicon isn't a problem, and the few grams of it in the chips of a PC aren't much use to anyone. A handful of sand (or a beer bottle) has much more.
It's mostly metals, like lead in CRT monitors, and nasty chemicals in various components that are dangerous. Plastics are the next, like the cases of monitors and printers. Steel cases can be melted down easily enough, but that's neither very valuable nor polluting.
A lot of "recycled" hardware ends up being sent to China. There are villages polluted beyond belief there, where people take components, smash them up, burn off the insulation (creating noxious fumes) to recover copper wire, etc. The poisons are released as smoke or into the ground and rivers.
As of February 1, 2005, persons buying electronic equipment in Alberta are subject to paying a fee ranging from $5 (Laptops) to $45 (46"+ TV)
It came as quite a surprise to most. I received a fax about a week before it became effective and about 2 days before I heard it mentioned on the news.
Electronic Recycling Products and fees
the US is always doing things last when it comes to health and environment.
In the netherlands we've had this for years allready. You pay a small extra for a heardryer, a toaster etc... and a bigger one for tv's, washing machines...
There have been several news stories about this. For instance Where Computers Go to Die
Thus LCD displays should also be recycled or disposed of properly, not just incinerated or buried.