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GAO
aAccountabiity Integrity-Reliability
Highlights
Highlights of GAO-06-47, a report to
congressional requestersWhy GAO Did This Study
Advances in technology have led to
rapidly increasing sales of new
electronic devices. With this
increase comes the dilemma of
managing these products at the end
of their useful lives. Some research
suggests that the disposal of used
electronics could cause a number
of environmental problems.
Research also suggests that such
problems are often exacerbated by
the export of used electronics to
countries without protective
environmental regulations.
Given that millions of used
electronics become obsolete each
year with only a fraction of them
being recycled, GAO was asked to
(1) summarize information on the
volumes of, and problems
associated with, used electronics;
(2) examine the factors affecting
their recycling and reuse; and
(3) examine federal efforts to
encourage recycling and reuse of
these products.
GAO recommends that EPA
strengthen the federal role in
encouraging recycling and reuse of
used electronics by (1) proposing
options to the Congress for
overcoming the factors deterring
recycling and reuse, (2) promoting
wider federal agency participation
in promising EPA programs, and
(3) taking steps to ensure safe
handling of these products if
exported. EPA agreed with most of
GAO's findings, but disagreed with
the first and second
recommendations.
www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-06-47.
To view the full product, including the scope
and methodology, click on the link above.
For more information, contact John
Stephenson at (202) 512-3841 or
Stephensonj@gao.gov.ELECTRONIC WASTE
Strengthening the Role of the Federal
Government in Encouraging Recycling
and ReuseWhat GAO Found
Available estimates suggest that over 100 million computers, monitors, and
televisions become obsolete each year, and this number is growing. If
improperly managed, these used electronics can harm the environment and
human health. Available data suggest that most used electronics are
probably stored in garages, attics, or warehouses, with the potential to be
recycled, reused, or disposed of in landfills, either in the United States or
overseas. If disposed of in landfills, valuable resources, such as copper, gold,
and aluminum, are lost for future use. Additionally, some research shows
that toxic substances with known adverse health effects, such as lead, have
the potential to leach from discarded electronics in landfills. Although one
study suggests that this leaching does not occur in modern U.S. landfills, it
appears that many used electronics are exported to countries without
modern landfills or with regulations less protective of human health and the
environment.
Economic factors inhibit the recycling and reuse of used electronics.
Consumers generally have to pay fees and drop off their used electronics at
often inconvenient locations to have them recycled or refurbished for reuse.
Recyclers and refurbishers charge these fees because their costs exceed the
revenue they receive from selling recycled commodities or refurbishing
units. In addition to these economic factors, federal regulatory requirements
provide little incentive for environmentally preferable management of used
electronics. First, the governing statute, the Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act, allows individuals and households to dispose of hazardous
waste, including many used electronics, in landfills. Second, federal
regulations do not provide a financing system to overcome the economic
factors deterring recycling and reuse. Third, federal regulations do not
prevent the exportation of used electronics to countries where disassembly
takes place at far lower cost, but where disassembly practices may threaten
human health and the environment. In the absence of federal actions to
address these concerns, an emerging patchwork of state requirements to
encourage recycling and reuse may place a substantial burden on
manufacturers, retailers, and recyclers, who incur additional costs and face
an uncertain regulatory landscape as a result.
In response to these challenges, EPA has spent about $2 million on several
promising programs to encourage recycling and reuse of used electronics.
Participation in one program-the Federal Electronics Challenge-has
already led the Bonneville Power Administration to substantial cost savings
through the procurement of environmentally friendly and energy efficient
electronic products. To date, however, federal participation in this and
other EPA electronics recycling programs has been minimal because-
unlike other successful federal procurement programs (such as EPA's and
the Department of Energy's Energy Star program)-participation is not
required.United States Government Accountability Office
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United States. Government Accountability Office. Electronic Waste: Strengthening the Role of the Federal Government in Encouraging Recycling and Reuse, report, November 10, 2005; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc295754/m1/2/: accessed March 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.