Electronics Recycling Exports:

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Electronics Recycling Exports Domestic v.
Overseas Repair alternatives Robin
Ingenthron President, American Retroworks
Inc. VP, ElectroniCycle Inc.
NRC Sept. 2002 Austin, Texas
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Focus on Monitors

• USA demand 2001 - 50 Million monitors
• China Demand (est.) - 50 M monitors (20)
• India Demand (est.) - 50 M monitors (25)
• These 3 countries will consume about 450 million
  pounds of copper to meet this demand
• USA is mostly replacement based on changing
  consumer preference (not obsolescence).
  India/China are mostly first use

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Two Basic Recycling Goals

• Best possible/available environmental management
• Least possible/available cost

The higher the cost, the lower the diversion
The lower the cost, the higher the risk of TAR
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Summary of Alternatives
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3 Kinds of Export

• Unprocessed junk
• Segregated, Demanufacured, and Graded scrap
  (copper, aluminum, palladium, etc.)
• Re-use and Repair
• Which of these are superior to mining? How
  important are they to the cost of recycling?

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Labor cost to product value spent and earned
per 1000 monitors
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USA - Repair

• As repair declines waste management increases
• Estimated non-digital TVs destined for
  obsolescence 100,000,000
• TV repair employment 1980 100,000 (NESDA
  members)
• TV repair employment 2000 39,000 (US BLS)
• TV repair employment, projected for 2010 19,000
  (US BLS)
• fickle consumer demand
• low USA tolerance for used / cosmetically
  functional
• high cost (22/hour) for Master Technician
• poor recruitment into the field

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Realistic Reuse Goals
of weight Re-usable
of units Re-usable
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- 2 re-use 20 cost reduction - diminishing
returns as re-use increases
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USA Recycling or Disposal Jobs / Ton
1 ton about 50 picture tubes source EPA JTR
Report
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USA Repair Creates Jobs
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Overseas Repair - Good Practices

• Average life for all durables is more than
  doubled
• cars, TVs, shoes, etc. are not disposable until
  unrepairable
• Consumer demand / tolerance is high
• Positive revenue 5-20 per unit has strict
  conditions
• US Technician appraised
• Make / model / year / serial / condition /
  country of manufacture
• No screen burn, 110/220 switches, SVGA
• Each individually manifested monitor may be
  sold/refused individually
• Fly and Buy and self-packing is common
• Different countries have different specialties
  and capacity
• Singapore / Malaysia / India (where parts are
  made)
• Latin America (Similar NTSC, power)
• Eastern Europe (High technical skills)

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Overseas Repair - Bad Practices

• Toxics along for the ride (TAR)
• Poorly packaged, hand-packed containers
• Buyer take all sale conditions
• Misrepresentation of condition
• Positive revenue a blurry picture
• per unit v. Pennies per pound
• Goodies along for the Ride (GAR) cigarettes,
  Harleys, cars
• Tariff avoidance, dual bill of lading
• Counterfeiting, grey market, enforced
  obsolescence
• Some repairers are too good
• OEM influence on import rules
• Warrantees

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A real bad sign
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Compare 4 USA electronics scrap companies

• 20 USA employees 0 sold for repair, 100
  demanufacturing - (.30/lb)
• 25 USA employees 25 monitors sold for
  reuse/repair, positive revenue. 75 scrapped in
  USA at a cost - (.15/lb)
• 6 USA employees 75 monitors shipped for scrap
  and repair at 0. 25 sent to company A above -
  (.06/lb)
• 1 USA employee 100 export. Generator is sent
  shipping container and packing list - ( 0)
• Where are the toxics along for the ride?

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4 Simple Rules for Exports

• All material must be individually listed on bill
  of lading. No take it all deals.
• Each listed item must be for positive revenue.
• US Company must have employee and plant capacity
  to demanufacture non-exportables.
• Keep a list of items never to be exported (e.g.
  CRT glass, gold) .
• Demand to see export bill of lading or shipping
  manifests (with name removed to protect
  proprietary market relationships).

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Alternative End World Mining Subsidies

• Percentage of gold, copper, silver, lead ores
  production
• from federal lands 95
• Projected Bureau of Land Management revenues
  from
• mineral royalties and leases 300,000
• Federal Employees managing mineral leases 339
• Bureau of Land Management lease /acre 5 (set
  in 1872)
• Federal share of gold/copper/silver income 0
• Number hard-rock mines of 15 largest Superfund
  sites 14
• Mining of ALL TOXICS from ALL US INDUSTRIES
  47
• Typical copper smelter fine 24,000 per day

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Copper - Production and Price
For the first half of the century, copper was
king. USA was worlds largest producer and
exporter. As electronic/electric
manufacturing moved to Asia and Latin America, so
have copper foundries. USA exports less copper
today than in 1900.
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Longer Term Solutions to E-Waste Recycling

• CERCLA (Superfund) Reauthorization - Funded by
  taxpayers since industry funding expired in 1995,
  most expenses are non-ferrous mining related.
• US Telecommunications Act - Provides billions in
  free airwaves for transition to Digital TV, which
  will "obsolete" the majority of TVs now in
  service no responsibility for recycling
• General Mining Act of 1872 - Terms have not been
  amended for 130 years.
• Federal Recycled Content Standards for Metals
• Structured Relief from EPA smelter fines
• Revise (1970 era) OEM Repair Support Rules

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What about Asian Mining Recycling?

• NO Superfund cleanup
• Environmental Arms Race Philippines, Indonesia,
  passed legislation modeled on 1872 General Mining
  Act
• Chinese mining deaths 2001 5,000-6,000
• Amazon/African gold mining uses elemental mercury
  
• Cyanide arsenic are byproducts of virgin copper

Copper as a percentage of mined Material, after
cyanide leaching lt2 Of that copper,
electronics grade lt10
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More Perspectives

• Www.ban.org
• www.unctad.org
• www.mineralpolicy.org
• www.mpi.org.au
• www.retroworks.com
• www.electronicycle.com