Electronics Recycling in the Federal Community

1. Electronics Recycling in the Federal Community FEC Partner Teleconference April 1, 2010

2. Overview • Reasons to recycle electronics • Electronics end-of-life flow chart • Following personal property regulations • Types of recyclers • Finding and evaluating a recycler • Preparing to recycle • Resources

3. Why Recycle? • Meets federal requirements • Executive Order 13514 • Meets certain state and local requirements • Some localities prohibit or restrict the disposal of certain electronics • http://www.electronicsrecycling.org/public/ContentPage.aspx?pageid=14

4. Why Recycle? • Saves energy, resources and money • Recycling 1,000 computers saves • Enough electricity to power 14 homes for one year • Greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to removing 5 passenger cars from the road for one year • The equivalent of 89 refrigerators in plastics, glass and metal

5. Environmental Hierarchy GSA Hierarchy Time Frame Regulation Reuse Internally 41 CFR 102-36 Declared Excess Report to GSA GSAXcess® Donation (Computers for Learning) 7 days 41 CFR 102-36.475 Reuse Transfer to other Federal Agencies 14 days 41 CFR 102-36 AND/OR Refurbishment Declared Surplus Donation (States and Non-Profits) 5 days 41 CFR 102-37 GSA Auctions® Public Sales 41 CFR 102-38 Recycling Abandonment / Destruction 41 CFR 102-36 Incineration / Landfill

6. Recycling Federally OwnedPersonal Property • Must adhere to Federal Management Regulations for property disposal • Property must go through the GSA disposition process • Obsolete or broken property with no value may be labeled for abandonment and destruction without going through the complete GSA process • After following the proper procedures, you can select any recycler you choose

7. Types of Electronics Recyclers • Asset Management • Repair and Refurbish • De-manufacture • Parts and Subassemblies Recovery • Materials Recovery and Recycling • Materials Processing and Refining • Brokers

8. Asset Management • Specialize in moving and managing of equipment • Corporate move-out firms • End of lease equipment • May handle more than electronics • Equipment may go to reuse or recycling • Useful equipment may be resold or sent to a refurbisher • Obsolete equipment may be disposed of or recycled

9. Repair and Refurbish • Resell equipment as-is or after minor maintenance • May provide media sanitization, cleaning • Refurbish equipment to improve value for resale • Repair or replace nonfunctional components • Upgrade obsolete components • Equipment likely to be reused • Equipment that can not be repaired or upgraded, and broken and replaced components, may be disposed of or recycled

10. De-Manufacture • Disassembles equipment for bulk reuse or recycling • By part (memory, disk drives, processors) • By material (plastics, glass, metals) • Material likely processed by hand • Most or all components and materials are reused or recycled

11. Parts and Subassemblies Recovery • Resell parts and subassemblies after testing • Recovered items vary • Parts: microchips and memory removed from motherboards, power supplies, video and sound cards, hard drives • Subassemblies: motherboards with intact components, cases with power supplies • May disassemble whole equipment or receive components from a demanufacturer or refurbisher • Most or all components and materials are reused or recycled

12. Materials Recovery and Recycling • Separate out, and prepare materials for recycling • May disassemble whole equipment or receive components from other types of processors • May process materials by shredding or other methods • Most or all materials are recycled

13. Materials Processing and Refining • Receive containers of like, processed, materials • Processes the material into a purer, more uniform material • Reuse potential of the material depends on its quality • Processed material is ready to be made into new products • Metal smelters will process base and precious metals • Special glass furnaces will handle CRT glass

14. Brokers • Brokers use relationships and networking to find markets for equipment and materials • A broker’s assets are their relationships and information about them may be closely guarded • Ask questions so that you are comfortable that the equipment and component materials are properly handled • Brokers may move devices, parts, or processed material

15. Important Notes! • One recycling company may have operations covering more than one recycling activity • Equipment that is sent for recycling may change hands several times during its processing • Understand the downstream processes of your recycler and be sure they demonstrate due diligence

16. Finding an Electronics Recycler • Check the lists of Responsible Recycling (R2) Practices certified recyclers • Perry Johnson Registrars: http://www.pjview.com/Clients/PJRreports/r2_cert.cfm • SGS: http://www.us.sgs.com/sgs-r2-certified-clients3-en-10.pdf • Check within your agency or with other federal facilities in your area • Contact your local or state environmental or solid waste agency • Local collection programs or databases of vendors

17. Finding an Electronics Recycler • EPA’s eCycling Web site includes links to donation, recycling and manufacturer take-back Web sites • http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/ecycling/donate.htm • GSA’s Environmental Services Schedule (GSA 899-5), a multiple award schedule of electronic waste or hazardous material recycling contractors • GSA contractors are not evaluated for their environmental practices • DoD facilities must use the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS)

18. Evaluating an Electronics Recycler • Use a recycler certified to the Responsible Recycling (R2) Practices • Choose and contract with another environmentally responsible electronics recycler • Perform due diligence or rely on due diligence performed by another federal entity

19. Other Certifications • R2/Recycling Industry Operating Standard (RIOS) • ISRI (Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries) • e-Stewards Certification Program • BAN (Basel Action Network) • Some states register electronics recyclers

20. Important Notes! • No federal agency (including the EPA or the Department of Defense) certifies electronics recyclers • Recyclers may have environmental permits or follow agency guidelines or standards • All recyclers should follow federal, state and local environmental regulations

21. FEC Tools for Due Diligence • Checklist for Selection of Electronics Reuse and Recycling Services • http://www.federalelectronicschallenge.net/resources/docs/select.pdf • Guidelines for On-Site Reviews of Electronics Recyclers • http://www.federalelectronicschallenge.net/resources/docs/onsite_review.pdf

22. Checklist for the Selection of Electronic Reuse and Recycling Services • Checklist to help make a first cut when conducting a market survey of potential recyclers • Can be completed over the phone or via email • Check boxes make for easy comparisons between companies • Even if using a responsible recycler this can help you to decide what services to request when asking for cost estimates

23. Guidelines for On-Site Reviews of Electronics Recyclers • Tool for documenting a detailed on-site visit • Provides questions and important considerations • Provides a worksheet to record answers and observations • Review information can be shared among FEC Partners • Tool contains Confidentiality Notice and addresses use of Confidential Business Information (CBI) • Required for FEC Award activities when using a recycler that is not R2 certified

24. Preparing to Recycle • Collect all peripherals and cables • Complete media sanitization of internal and external media • Remove property decals • Remove external media (disks, CDs, DVDs, USB drives, paper) • Properly package equipment to reduce breakage • Complete necessary documentation

25. Resources • FEC (End-of-life) • http://www.federalelectronicschallenge.net/resources/eolmngt.htm • GSA (Personal Property Disposal) • http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/channelView.do?pageTypeId=8211&channelId=-13012 • DRMS • http://www.drms.dla.mil/ • EPA eCycling • http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/ecycling/index.htm

26. Contact Us • FEC Champions • https://db2.erg.com/fec/champions.asp • Partner E-mail • partner@electronicschallenge.net • Cate Berard • berard.cate@epa.gov • 202-564-8847