Jul 2 - NC - E-waste Recycling Could Get Even Easier in North Carolina

A new bill may amend North Carolina's existing e-waste law to allow residents to dispose of their old computers  as part of the curbside program.

An amended electronic waste bill that only needs the governor's signature assigns shared responsibility for recycling electronics to manufacturers and local governments. Either manufacturers can shoulder most of the burden of recycling their products or they can pay for local governments to do more of the heavy lifting for them.

Electronics contain potentially harmful materials like mercury. Unlike other recyclables, computers can require disassembly and are made of numerous materials. In a February study, the N.C. Division of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance estimated that there were almost 70,000 tons of electronic waste ready for disposal in North Carolina in 2007.

Currently, the state e-waste law bans the disposal of televisions and computers starting next year. The law also requires manufacturers to create a recycling plan, register with the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources and pay annual fees, which are distributed to local governments for recycling programs.

The main difference with the amendment is that it allows computer companies to choose from different tiered recycle plans. The more intensive the plan, the less expensive the annual fee that the company has to pay. For example, a company with a plan that includes a mail-back option and at least one waste collection site pays a $15,000 annual fee, but a company with a plan that includes collection sites in 50 counties only pays a $2,500 fee.

The bill also pushes back the disposal ban from January to July of next year.

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