Arlington, Va. – The following statement by the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) is a response to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed rule to remove cathode ray tubes (CRTs) and mercury-containing electronic equipment from certain hazardous waste regulations when they are collected and shipped for recycling:

“One of the main goals of the electronics industry is to lessen the environmental impact of its products over their entire life cycle – from design, to use, to end of life. At end of life, we strongly encourage recycling as the best option. 

“In order to meet our goal and successfully increase the level of electronics recycling within the United States, we must increase the recycling infrastructure and make electronics recycling a viable domestic industry.

“This proposed rule is a key step in the right direction. By removing used electronics containing CRTs and mercury lamps from certain hazardous waste regulations when they are recycled, the EPA is providing a strong economic incentive that will promote the development of more collection and recycling opportunities for used electronics within the United States.

“Under the proposed rule, facilities that collect and transport used electronics will benefit from reduced transportation costs and reduced permitting requirements – both of which will reduce overall recycling costs, providing economic incentives for the collection and siting of recycling facilities.  The net benefit is that consumers will have more opportunities to recycle used electronics.

“This rule is the result of years of multi-stakeholder cooperation including the electronics industry, the Environmental Protection Agency and environmentalists. The proposal represents an important piece of the multi-faceted solution that is necessary to promote environmentally sound and affordable electronics recycling in the United States.  We are very pleased with the intent of the proposed rule and we look forward to submitting comments on the proposal to ensure that the proposal promotes electronics recycling to the greatest extent possible.”