Would you notice an extra $1.97 the next time you buy a laptop?
Environment Canada reports we dumped 140,000 tonnes of e-waste into landfills between 2004 and 2005, and it expects that flow of discarded tech to triple by 2011. That’s a scary stat, but I’m not about to advocate that we stop…
Environment Canada reports we dumped 140,000 tonnes of e-waste into landfills between 2004 and 2005, and it expects that flow of discarded tech to triple by 2011. That’s a scary stat, but I’m not about to advocate that we stop buying new technology or even slow our upgrade cycles.
Heck, according to the Conference Board of Canada we’re already under investing in new technology. In 2005, the average per-worker investment in ICT-related equipment in the U.S. was $3,200. In Canada it was $1,800. I don’t want to erode that number any further.
But we do need to manage that waste in an environmentally responsible manner, and here’s the good news: that is an entirely attainable goal. Vendors are doing it: Xerox announced in November of last year that, worldwide, its recycling efforts had diverted two billion pounds of print cartridges and toner away from landfills, and HP is now building inkjet cartridges out of recycled plastic; it claims to have used five million pounds of post-consumer plastic in 2007, with twice as much slated for 2008.
And there are private e-waste centres popping up all over Canada. Backbone’s recent story introduces one particularly inventive guy in Barrie, Ont., who turns mixed plastic waste into diesel fuel. He plans to produce 500 litres of diesel per hour soon at one plant alone.
But as successful as these spot initiatives are, an industry-wide recycling program would be that much more effective. That’s why I hope a levy (or green tax, call it what it is) proposed by Waste Diversion Ontario takes off. The plan is to pay for e-waste recycling by adding a few bucks to the price of new electronics.
The proposal would add $12.36 to the cost of desktops, $1.97 to laptops, $10.99 for monitors, $0.35 for peripherals, $4.64 for printers, etc. If the proposal passes in the fall, Ontario will join B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and PEI.
The levy is a great idea. I suspect even large companies which buy 500 laptops in one shot will not grouch too much about the extra $1,000 fee, especially if all manufacturers are charging it, and I can’t see any consumers getting upset about the additional $2 for one notebook. And even if people do bellyache, tough. It’s a good idea and the proposal should be passed by the Ontario legislature.
By Peter Wolchak
Backbone magazine
Personally I think this is a great idea. I do hope the proposal does get passed by the legislature. What's $12.36 on a new desktop anyway? Just pay some extra cash and save more; the world that is.
It's easy for governments to add on a fee, increase it, but very hard to give it up. Look at the tire tax in Ontario which was supposed to raise money to find ways to properly dispose of used tires. This tax was rationalized after the fire in the tire junk yard in Hagersville, ON on February 12, 1990. Well, guess where that $5.00 per new tire sold goes when the Ontario government gets it – General Revenue. Have there been innovative methods developed for disposing tires, to divert tires from land fills and more importantly, to prevent another environmental disaster such as the Hagersville fire? Nope; but the Ontario government has raked in millions. What's to say that the same thing won't happen with this green tax just because it has a sexy name for just another opportunity for a tax grab.
Do most stores not take in older electronics and dispose of them or efurbish to give to foundations? I believe I saw a bin at Staples, and I am planning on pressing reformat on this piece of a laptop and bringing it there when my new one comes in! …Same with my old, non-functional cell phone.
A levy is not a guarantee against disposing of old technology in the landfills. A lot of people just don't care or are too lazy to properly dispose of old computers, and such, and just dump them into the garbage bins.
I think its a great idea, as long as the money is used for recycling Ideas and intiatives, and not just thrown into the general money pot!!!!
We have this already in Nova Scotia; but it's more like $15 or $20 per laptop. The money is *supposed* to pay for recycling but in this day and age we damn well sure know that the government is dipping into it for thier own use.
We pay anywhere from $15 to $45 on top of the taxes when we buy a TV; since we're recycling them maybe prices should drop by that much? Not likely. We're in Canada.
With the way our government treats us, sometimes it feels like we're living in the 3rd Reich.
I too feel the tug of pessimism when it comes to government accountability for the money we send in, and as pointed out there is no guarantee that the money paid in levies will stay out of the general coffers.
At the same time, if we automatically reject any government initiative because it may be mishandled then we are essentially giving up on the idea of governments in general.
I'm not willing to let the possibility of a problem dissuade me from believing that many, many programs are valuable and run well.
Peter
Marie wrote: Do most stores not take in older electronics and dispose of them or efurbish to give to foundations?
Absolutely, and these programs are great and the vendors should be applauded. But as I said, if these point programs are successful imagine how effective a national, standardized system could be.
A lot of this is about changing the opinions of individuals. That's how both smoking and drinking and driving became socially unacceptable, and perhaps tossing a PC into a garbage bag will be unacceptable one day too.
Peter
It can be pretty surprising that so much tech trash is disposed of, but there still are many initiatives out there that are trying to reuse such things. Batteries are one thing, I know you can dispose of rechargeables at some hardware stores. You can donate old mobile phones that are given out to young women and the abused (for use to call 911 in emergencies). And there are also programs like Computers for Schools, that take old desktops and refurbish them for donation to public libraries and schools that need them.
[...] An unfortunate consequence of the ever-decreasing price (and fast-changing pace of obsolescence) of consumer electronics is the problem of electronic waste. Ontario, like many other provinces instituted a recycling fee to deal with the problem of e-waste. Fortunately, a whole crop of businesses have emerged to deal with processing, reclaiming and recycling electronic waste, which Environment Canada predicts will hit 520,000 tonnes by 2011. [...]