RESIDENTIAL COLLECTION PROGRAMS   One of the major challenges for electronics recycling is the increasing large volumes of obsolete electronic products owned by consumers. The costs of residential collection and the inherently lower value of obsolete consumer electronics present economic and logistical obstacles for both the public and private sector. In recent years there have been a number of programs in the USA to develop and test approaches to residential collection to try to overcome those obstacles. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and its Common Sense Initiative (CSI) took the leadership to initiate such programs. Several states have since followed with similar programs. Following is a summary of some of the results as well as references to source information.    CONCLUSIONS FROM EPA/CSI PILOT PROGRAMS Net costs ranged from $0.17 to $0.50 per pound   The dominant costs were for:   - Transportation - Demanufacturing - Disposal   A variety of different program models were used: – Curbside collection – Drop-off events – Permanent collection depot – Point of purchase (retail) collection   The weighted average of all collection programs was comprised of: – TVs (36%) – Audio and stereo equipment (16%) – Monitors (11%) – Computers (8%) – VCRs (6%)   Most of the equipment collected was outdated and in poor condition, so it was expensive to handle and had low scrap value. Items that contained CRTs predominated, which drove up the program costs. There were differences in efficiencies and costs between the program models used: – Curbside collection yielded more pounds of material collected per resident, but had high transportation costs. – The cost per item collected was lower for one-day collection events due to lower transportation and operating costs. Planning and promotion were essential to the effectiveness of the collection programs. INFORMATION RESOURCES - ABOUT RESIDENTIAL COLLECTION PROGRAMS   EPA Pilots under the Common Sense Initiative Overview available at: http://www.epa.gov/commonsense/computer/accomp7.htm The report ("Analysis of Five Community Consumer/Residential Collections of End-of-Life Electronic and Electrical Equipment") is available to download as a PDF file from the EPA Region 1 publications page at: http://www.epa.gov/region1/compliance/solid/publications.html Article on Computer Recycling and Residential Collection Programs "The Conundrum of Computer Recycling", by Leah Jung Resource Recycling Magazine, May 1999 Available at: http://www.vista.simplenet.com/conundrum.html Massachusetts Program on TV & Computer Reuse and Recycling Program descriptions, resources, and links available at: http://www.state.ma.us/dep/recycle/crt/crthome.htm The report ("Electronics Re-Use and Recycling Infrastructure Development in Massachusetts") is available to download as a PDF file from the EPA Region 1 publications page at: http://www.epa.gov/region1/compliance/solid/publications.html   NRC State Summaries The National Recycling Coalition (NRC) has compiled nationwide information about electronic reuse and recycling programs. Summaries of state programs with links are available at: http://www.nrc-recycle.org/programs/electronics/policy.htm   Minnesota Pilot Program: Final Report - http://www.moea.state.mn.us/plugin/report.cfm Multi-Stakeholder Approach to Managing Electronic Products at End of Life Presented at the International Symposium on Electronics and the Environment May 8-10, 2000, San Francisco - sponsored by the IEEE Electronics and the Environment Committee Presented by MOEA, Sony, Panasonic, Waste Management, APC
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