News

Waste not, want not

As computer components pile up in landfills, Congress is considering legislating e-waste. Kiosk companies had better take note.

June 26, 2005

According to the research firm Gartner, about 133,000 personal computers get thrown in the trash every day in America. That's a lot of keyboards, mice, hard drives and monitors.

The average computer system contains about eight pounds of lead. Do the math on that - more than a million pounds of lead put in the ground every day. And that doesn't take into account other electronic products like MP3 players, cell phones, PDAs - and kiosks, of course, in their myriad configurations.

It's a serious environmental issue, and one beginning to rise in public awareness. There will be no escaping the implications of "e-waste," especially now that state legislation has kicked in and federal movements don't appear to be far off.

Earlier this year, California started a mandatory recycling program for all computers and television sets. It's not a cheap process - unlike tin cans or plastic bags, it operates at a loss - so consumers have been footing the bill by paying a fee for each product recycled. In Maine and Maryland, the two other states that have moved on the issue, the manufacturer pays the fee.

At this early stage, consistency is missing - 24 other states are looking at the issue and trying to figure out what to do. This has painted a nightmare scenario in the minds of some environmentalists - every state tackling hazardous e-waste differently, with varying levels of success and efficiency.

On three occasions, Rep. Mike Thompson (D-Calif.) has introduced legislation that would make e-waste a federal issue. He stressed the importance of the issue in a March 2005 letter to House Science Chair Sherwood Boehlert, requesting a Congressional hearing on the matter:

"The e-waste that is generated from obsolete computers is fast becoming a serious danger to public health and the environment. ... E-waste contains large amounts of documented hazardous materials and carcinogens, including lead, cadmium, chromium, brominated-flame retardants and PVC plastics. We are concerned that until e-waste is properly recycled, its hazardous components will continue to threaten human health and the environment. Â… without a national law, a patchwork of different state laws makes it difficult and expensive for manufacturers and retailers to follow them."

Catch-up

What we're really doing here is playing catch-up. Japan has been working hard on removing lead from its manufacturing processes since 1998, and is trying to minimize the use of other hazardous materials like tin, bismuth and zinc. Europe is grappling with the implications of the EU's RoHS, the "Restriction of the use of certain Hazardous Substances," which takes effect on July 1, 2006. An entire industry of RoHS consultancies has rapidly emerged, as companies and nations try their best to figure out what to do with all of this toxic stuff that makes our beloved machines work.

Companies like Fujitsu are taking the smart approach: get the problematic material out of your products before they become a real problem. In May, the company announced that all of its touchpanel products would be lead-free from then on, tin-lead plated cable being replaced with gold-plated. Smarter still was the announced integration of the new products: The transition would happen transparently, with new lead-free monitors serving as "drop-in" replacements for their legacy counterparts.

Given the glacial pace at which legislation comes into being, it's probably not worth a race to the warehouse to disassemble all of the components there. But it is worth a race to the drawing board to come up with a plan for a smart, pro-active policy. What materials will not be allowed in any components you purchase or sell, and at what date will that rule go into effect? What services will you offer your customers that make a major upgrade, turning in hundreds or thousands of kiosks for new ones?

One smart change that could be implemented right away is a return policy. Let your customers know that if they have a monitor or other component that breaks, for instance, you will pay the shipping to have it returned to your facility, where you will recycle it. Let them know why you are doing this, and why it is important. Let them know that the battery on the motherboard contains mercury, that the solder points and glass contain lead, that the sensors and electroplating contain cadmium, and that you care enough to make sure those materials get disposed of properly.

Building such a policy now will give kiosk companies a dual benefit: They'll be ahead of the curve when legislation does arrive, and they'll get the PR boost that comes from being seen by the public as a forward-thinking company. In the long run, this - plus the very real environmental benefit - will more than outweigh the cost.