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Although some sites may collect other unwanted electronics gear, such as cell phones and printers, they may charge for taking those items because those are not covered under the Oregon E-Cycles program. Electronics contain a host of hazardous substances, including mercury and lead. Even small amounts of these toxins can be dangerous. Electronics also contain valuable materials, including copper, gold and aluminum. The CBS news program "60 Minutes" recently aired an investigative report tracking e-waste. "60 Minutes" reporter Scott Pelley discovered an illegal electronic wasteland in Guiyo, China. Pelley and crew tracked a container of old computer CRT monitors owned by Colorado-based Executive Recycling. Gangs at the dump site tried to take CBS's footage, but the film crew escaped. Executive Recycling called the report unfair and issued a statement: "Sadly, Executive Recycling appears now to be the victim of others who have obtained electronic and computer products from our company and then acted irresponsibly." The company also said, "no business can be responsible for the subsequent improper actions of others who lawfully purchase products from them and hide their intentions to engage in misconduct."Although some sites may collect other unwanted electronics gear, such as cell phones and printers, they may charge for taking those items because those are not covered under the Oregon E-Cycles program. Electronics contain a host of hazardous substances, including mercury and lead. Even small amounts of these toxins can be dangerous. Electronics also contain valuable materials, including copper, gold and aluminum. The CBS news program "60 Minutes" recently aired an investigative report tracking e-waste. "60 Minutes" reporter Scott Pelley discovered an illegal electronic wasteland in Guiyo, China. Pelley and crew tracked a container of old computer CRT monitors owned by Colorado-based Executive Recycling. Gangs at the dump site tried to take

One of the thorniest problems with Green IT is what to do with all the computers, monitors, hardware, and other electronics your company no longer needs. You may think that you've solved the problem by choosing a responsible recycler or asset management firm. But according to a recent 60 Minutes segment, that e-waste may end up in unregulated toxic waste dumps in China that foul the land, water, and air, cause cancers and miscarriages, and endanger children. Includes video of a 60 minutes segment following the illegal trail of e-waste from a recycler in Colorado to China. Article by Preston Gralla, Greener Computing, 11/19/08.

"It seems like every time you turn around a new and better smartphone or HDTV set goes on sale. That's great for consumers who are eager to upgrade to the latest gadgets but it's maybe not so good for the environment. The bad news is 60% of Americans are not recycling their old gadgets. The good news is that resellers and manufacturers are rising to the occasion and implementing their own recycling services. In this Gadget Census report we look at how consumers across the country are being green with gadgets and what is being done to help manage the growing number of devices that are turning into e-waste every day. "

E-waste has been in the news a lot lately, with the 60 Minutes expose on toxic electronic waste illegally shipped to other countries, and reports from organizations like the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, who recently traveled to India to track the global e-waste crisis. People are starting to pay more attention to where their electronics go when we lose interest in them.

New e-waste recycling laws passed in Oregon and Washington take effect on New Year's Day, requiring electronics manufacturers to recycled old hardware, and promising to spur the growth of responsible e-waste disposal. The laws, which passed in mid-2007 in Oregon and in 2006 in Washington, require manufacturers to pay for the recycling of their electronics products sold in each state, and is expected to collect as much as 12 million pounds of electronics in Oregon and about 25 million in Washington in the first year alone. The new laws are among the toughest in the country, and highlight what e-waste and public health advocates say is the best solution to the country's -- and the planet's -- enormous e-waste problem. As we found in researching electronic waste in 2008's State of Green Business report, the mountain of potentially valuable (and often toxic) electronic waste is growing substantially faster than companies and governments are able to collect and recycle it. In the wake of a harshly critical government report and an eye-opening exposé on television's 60 Minutes newsmagazine, e-waste has spent a lot of time in the limelight this year. And the new laws promise to help turn the tide from what activist groups have called "anarchy" in the e-waste takeback market.

The emerging category of "green" electronics has captured consumers' attention in the past year. They are beginning to understand the various environmental and health impacts of the plethora of devices they interact with on a daily basis, according to research from the Natural Marketing Institute. Consumers are most anxious that their devices are difficult to recycle, but their concern differs by device, with almost 60 percent of consumers concerned that televisions are difficult to recycle, and only slightly over 40 percent of consumers stating that phones are difficult to recycle, according to the 2008 LOHAS Consumer Trends Database.

Indiana law signed 5/13/09. Manufacturers of video display devices, such as TVs, computer monitors and laptops, must recycle 60 percent by weight of their sales of those products. They are required to register with the state by April 2010 and must include a plan describing how they will meet their recycling targets. They can count the recycling of other electronics, such as printers, keyboards and VCRs, toward their recycling goals. Manufacturers must report their progress at the end of each program year for state review. In the third year, the state will impose penalties for noncompliance.