“By this time next year it will be illegal for Maine residents to dispose of computers and TV sets with other household trash, and the state is now trying to figure out how to charge for mandated recycling,” Victoria Wallack reports for The Statehouse Reporter. ‘State law passed in 2004 requires computer and TV manufacturers pay some of the recycling costs in a shared arrangement with municipalities. Maine is the first state in the nation to require manufacturers pay, based on the number of their products that get recycled, for the handling of what’s become known as ‘e-waste.'”
Under the law, manufacturers most likely will be charged a per pound fee for their recycled equipment,” Wallack reports. “Apple Computer says it wants to pick up its old products itself rather than pay for the recycling so it can get a look at what happens to the machinery ‘at the end of life,’ Cifrino said. ‘It’s a chance for them to learn something more about their business,’ she said. Others say they’ll pick up their estimated share of the total e-waste pile and get it recycled themselves because they already have good relationships with recyclers.”
Full article here.
