CANBERRA E-WASTE RECYCLING SCHEME DUE TO START 15 MAY 2012

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GOOD NEWS OUT OF CANBERRA VIA COMPUTER WORLD

Canberra will be the first jurisdiction to dispose unwanted electronics under the incoming national e-waste recycling scheme.

Under the industry-run and -funded National Television and Computer Recycling Scheme, to be launched mid-2012, DHL Supply Chain — a government-approved administrator — will provide free pick-up of computers, hard drives, keyboards, printers and televisions from 15 May 2012.

The service will operate from Mugga Lane and Mitchell transfer stations in ACT seven days a week.

[ Get the latest IT news on the Australian government and businesses in Computerworld's Business & Government newsletter ]

A spokesperson for the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities told Computerworld Australia that fellow administrators, the Australia and New Zealand Recycling Platform and E-Cycle Solutions will be required to provide recycling services to the ACT by the end of 2013.

The scheme aims to curb the increasing dumping of electronic waste in Australian landfills — expected to hit 181,000 tonnes by 2028 from 106,000 tonnes in 2008 — and boost the recycling rate for TVs and computers from 17 per cent in 2010 to 80 per cent by 2021.

It is also looking at reducing human and environmental exposure to hazardous e-waste materials such as bromine, lead, mercury and zinc, as well as meeting a material recovery of 90 per cent by 2015.

The scheme was established under the Product Stewardship (Televisions and Computers) Regulations 2011 legislation and is to be amended to align the products and product codes with the revised product codes used in import declarations.

An exposure draft of the Product Stewardship (Televisions and Computers) Amendment Regulation 2012 has been released for public comment until 17 May 2012.

The scheme is to be rolled out across the country by 31 December 2013.

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The problematic poser: who should pay for e-waste disposal

THE ARTICLE BELOW IS FROM SMART PLANET

Who should pay for e-waste disposal?

By Vanessa Ko | December 7, 2011, 2:22 AM PST

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HONG KONG — Hong Kong will soon have a facility designated for dismantling and recycling electronic products such as televisions, refrigerators and computers.

A tax will be added to the price tags of electronic products to help pay for e-waste disposal. Based on a similar tax in other cities, the cost of home appliances is expected to go up by $12 to $30.

The question now is whether consumers should pay for all of the recycling costs. Some argue that retailers and manufacturers should pay for part of it to hold accountable all involved parties.

The current proposal places the recycling fee at the retail level, and it is likely that retailers will simply charge the extra cost to consumers. This type of legislation “is not really the spirit of producer responsibility” as intended by the legislation, said Edwin Lau, general affairs director of Friends of the Earth in Hong Kong.

Lau said in over 30 jurisdictions around the world, the e-waste fee is charged to the importer, as electronic products are frequently manufactured overseas.

“Of course producers have the responsibility to contribute a small part of their earning to the annual operation cost of the e-waste recycling plant that will have our e-waste properly dismantled and recycled and reused,” Lau said.

In California, there is a $10 fee added to the price of electronic products with viewable screens, but retailers may choose to pay the fee on behalf of the consumer to make its prices more competitive. Several other U.S. states charge e-waste recycling fees to manufacturers.

Right now, about 80% of Hong Kong’s e-waste is exported to other cities and countries. Many of these areas are poor and use polluting processes that are harmful to the workers’ health. “It’s not environmentally responsible,” Lau said, “and it’s not ethical.”

Photo: Vanessa Ko

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About Vanessa Ko

Vanessa Ko is a Hong Kong correspondent for SmartPlanet.

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Commonwealth Product Stewardship: corporates: resource recovery from E-waste

Logo from Wingecarribee Shire Council site

This item was sourced from 4-Traders

11/17/2011 | 08:20 pm

Enter MOU to acquire an 

E-waste recycling company

17 November 2011
ANNOUNCEMENT HydroMet enters MOU to Acquire an E-waste Recycling Company An Emerging Market in the Waste Management Industry

The Board of HydroMet Corporation is pleased to announce that, as part of its diversification and expansion plan, the company has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with a rapidly growing E-waste recycling company, PGM Refiners Pty Ltd, to take a controlling stake via a new share placement which would be funded by HMC from internal resources.

PGM is an Australian based company with a newly upgraded processing facility in Dandenong, Victoria and has plans for expansion into other states. The company expects that with the recently passed Commonwealth Product Stewardship specifically designed to increase E-waste recycling rates, reduce E-waste from landfill and reduce illegal exports, there will be substantial quantities of E-waste requiring to be recycled by companies such as PGM.

PGM has designed and developed its own technology to recover valuable commodities such as aluminium, copper, steel, plastics and precious metals from electronic waste. It also separates and upgrades the television glass fraction (CRT) which predominantly contains lead to be sent for lead recovery by lead smelters. It is expected the above acquisition should increase the combined processing capability of both Hydromet and PGM and along with downstream processing will offer an enhanced one stop solution to the growing E-waste problem in Australia. The senior members of PGM's management team should offer further resources and strength to the overall growth of Hydromet in the future.

On completion of the final agreement, this acquisition is subject to the approval of PGM shareholders and, as Dr Lakshman Jayaweera, Chairman of Hydromet, and his son Mr Karvan Jayaweera have interests in and are directors of PGM, approval of this transaction by Hydromet shareholders is also required under the Corporations Act. The Hydromet shareholders meeting to approve this transaction should take place in February 2012.

For further information:
Gregory Wrightson
Managing Director
02 4271 1822
Lot 3, Five Islands Road, Unanderra NSW 2526 Australia
PO Box 42, Unanderra NSW 2526 Australia
Telephone: +61 2 4271 1822 Facsimile: +61 2 4271 6151
Website: www.hydromet.com.au email: office@hydromet.com.au

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