The York County Solid Waste and Refuse Authority has canceled its electronics recycling program, citing costs and complications arising from a state environmental law. Municipal satellite programs in Carroll, Fairview, Hopewell, Penn, Shrewsbury, Warrington, Dover, Fawn, Lower Windsor and Windsor townships, as well as Stewartstown and York, will also suspend activities, the press release said.
Televisions, desktop and laptop computers, computer monitors and items such as a keyboard or printer are now banned from disposal at Pennsylvania waste facilities, the authority said. Residents and business owners should keep possession of electronic devices until a new program is implemented.
The authority blamed a 2010 Department of Environmental Protection law, Act 108, for the program’s suspension. The law, called “The Covered Device Recycling Act of 2010,” sets requirements for the recycling of computers and related items, according to a DEP fact sheet. “Act 108 has created an imbalance of supply and demand which makes it economically prohibitive for electronics recycling vendors to operate in Pennsylvania,” the York County Solid Waste and Refuse Authority said in the press release.
The DEP fact sheet stated that under the law, electronics recycling facilities must maintain one of three recycling standards certifications. The law also requires manufacturers to register products with the DEP and conduct recycling programs at no cost to consumers. Retailers are prohibited from selling products not registered with DEP and must tell customers where they can recycle their products at no cost. Officials from the York County Solid Waste and Refuse Authority, as well as the DEP, were not immediately available for comment Friday.
From http://www.ydr.com/story/news/2015/12/18/county-authority-nixes-e-recycling-blames-law/77587366/