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Find an R2 recycler
Choosing an R2 certified recycler takes the guess work out of hiring a reputable electronics recycler that adheres to the highest industry standards.
To find a certified R2 electronics recycler, click here.
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Become R2 certified
R2 is the leading standard for the electronics recycling industry, setting a high bar for practices that protect the environment, human health, safety and the security of the recycling process. Show your customers that you are an industry leader.
To become an R2 certified recycler, please contact one of these accredited certifying bodies.
AQA International
Orion Registrar, Inc.
Perry Johnson Registrars, Inc.
QMI-SAI Global
SGS
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Welcome to the R2 Update! This newsletter contains relevant industry information and news pertaining to R2 Solutions, and more importantly the R2 Standard, the leading certification program for the electronics recycling industry.
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First Annual Meeting of R2 Certified Recyclers
R2 Solutions held its first annual meeting of R2 certified recyclers in Dallas, TX prior to the E-Scrap Conference. Over seventy-five participants listened to presentations about the R2 program and engaged in a robust question and answer session.
Executive Director John Lingelbach highlighted the explosive growth of R2 certified facilities from 200 facilities in April, to 275 at the time of the conference. R2 Certification is the fastest growing and most wide used industry certification for electronics recyclers.
Lynn Rubinstein, Chair of the R2 Solutions Board of Directors spoke about plans for the future. She described the organizations plans to increase its efforts in the areas of quality control and marketing to recyclers' customers. In addition, on behalf of the Board of Directors, Lynn presented a service award to John Lingelbach, recognizing his "leadership, vision, and dedication in the development and promotion of the Responsible Recycling (R2) Standard."
Rike Sandlin, Co-Chair of the Technical Advisory Committee, presented a brief summary of changes under consideration for R2:2013.
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R2 Certified Recyclers Recognized by EPA SMM Challenge
Last week, the United States Environmental Protection Agency announced a new program called the Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) Electronics Challenge. The program requires participants to send "100 percent of their used electronics to a recognized third-party certified recycler by the third year of your participation." Eight Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and two retailers have joined the program, including Best Buy Corporation, Dell Inc., and Sony Electronics.
R2 Solutions applauds the U.S. EPA for their leadership in recognizing and promoting R2 certified recyclers.
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R2 Education Series Continues
R2 Solutions held a two-part workshop on Tuesday, September 18, 2012 preceding the E-Scrap Conference in Dallas, TX. The workshops were sold out with over 100 people attending. Participants received a crash course in the fundamentals of the 13 provisions of the R2 Standard. In addition, Part II focused on building a downstream due diligence program and best refurbishment practices. A great thank you to our sponsors: ARCOA, Battery Solutions, Clover Environmental Solutions, ISRI, Global Environmental Services, MRM, and Unicor.
Due to the success of the workshop, a new training event is planned for the International Computer Refurbisher Summit (ICRS) in November. The training will be held on Monday, November 12, 2012 in Glendale, AZ. The topic will be "The Value of R2/RIOS Certification for Refurbishers". This course is designed for refurbishers who want to learn more about R2/RIOS certification and its value to their business. It will provide basic information about the key provisions of the R2 and RIOS standards as well as the certification process. Also, certified refurbishers will provide their perspectives on the benefits of certification.
For more information about ICRS, click here. Contact Corey Dehmey for information on sponsorship opportunities at cdehmey@r2solutions.org. |
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Certified Company Spotlight:
Waste Commision of Scott County
From time to time, the R2 Update will be featuring an R2 Certified company. This article was provided by the Waste Commission of Scott County. For more information, call (563) 823-0119 or visit www.wastecom.com.
Electronic demanufacturing facility in Iowa first public agency in the world to be Responsible Recycling (R2) certified
Waste Commission of Scott County (Commission) is an inter-governmental agency located in Davenport, Iowa. The Commission operates a landfill, recycling center, two household hazardous material facilities, a public education program and a Keep America Beautiful affiliate. To further landfill diversion, the Commission opened the Electronic Demanufacturing Facility (Facility) in November of 2005.
"Building the Electronic Demanufacturing Facility was a natural step forward for the Commission at that time," explained Keith Krambeck, special waste manager for the Commission. "In 1989, we were the first agency in Iowa to start an appliance demanufacturing program and in 1996 we opened our first hazardous material facility. So from that perspective, we had over two decades of experience in demanufacturing, processing and properly managing hazardous materials," Krambeck said.
Through regional inter-governmental cooperation, the Commission focused its electronic waste diversion efforts on the residential sector, with a goal of processing 500 tons of electronics per year. That goal was met within the first two years of operation. Seeing success in the residential sector, the Commission began to shift its focus toward businesses and knew a third party certification would be vital to growth.
The Facility's path to certification began in 2009 when the Commission was chosen to participate in the state of Iowa's Environmental Management System (EMS) pilot program for solid waste agencies. In February of 2011, the Commission completed the pilot program and shortly after began work on the R2 certification process. In April of 2012, the Electronic Demanufacturing Facility became the first public agency in the world and the only agency in the state of Iowa to achieve R2 certification.
The Facility had several reasons for becoming R2 certified. The first was to formalize the environmental, health, safety and best management practices the Facility had in place since opening in 2005.
"Although the Facility had sound practices in place, we wanted a third party certification that could provide objective evidence to prove those practices," explained Krambeck.
Secondly, since the Facility opened, the main focus has been on residential electronics. Currently, 66 percent of the material received is from a residential source.
"We decided the time was right to start marketing to businesses and electronics manufacturers, knowing these customers would likely require or prefer a third party certification," said Kathy Morris, director for the Commission.
Finally, the ultimate goal was to increase the total amount of electronics coming through the Facility.
"We believe the R2 certification will give our Facility a competitive edge and help generate more business, industry and government accounts. More material coming through our Facility helps maintain low rates for residents of the Commission's member communities, and ultimately, lower rates for all of the Facility's customers," Morris said.
Last year, the Electronic Demanufacturing Facility processed 892 tons of material and anticipates recycling 1,000 tons in the coming year. |
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Conformity Review: Landfilling CRT Glass
Conformity review is a monthly column highlighting important operational information concerning the R2 Standard. For further information regarding the matters discussed in this article, please contact Corey Dehmey at cdehmey@r2solutions.org.
This past week, the California Department of Toxic Substance Control (DTSC) sent out a Notification of Proposed Emergency Regulatory action regarding Disposition Options for Universal Waste Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs) and CRT Glass. Currently, landfill disposal of CRT glass is not allowed under California state law. This emergency regulation would allow landfill disposal of CRT glass, among other treatment options, in lieu of glass-to-glass recycling or lead smelting.
The R2 Standard clearly prohibits the land disposal of CRT glass, a Focus Material (FM). Provision 5(d) states "An R2 electronics recycler shall not utilize energy recovery, incineration, or land disposal as a management strategy for FMs". The same provision does allow for landfill if "circumstances beyond the control of the R2 recycler disrupt its normal management of an FM" and it is allowed under applicable law.
In applying the proposed emergency regulatory action in California as it would affect R2 certified recyclers in California, the key issue lies in the definition of "normal management". Legally acceptable strategies are defined in the California Code of Regulations, title 22, chapter 23. Current allowable management strategies include glass-to-glass recycling and smelting of CRT glass. Both of these options are currently available in North America. Therefore, in order to avail itself of the proposed emergency regulation and dispose of CRT glass in landfills, an R2 certified recycler would need to prove that normal management strategies have been disrupted by circumstances beyond the recycler's control.
Since both glass-to-glass recycling and lead smelting are available in North America, landfilling of CRT glass would continue to be a prohibited management strategy under the R2 Standard. The allowance for landfilling due to disruptions of normal management practices would be very difficult to prove and the burden of proof lies with the R2 certified recycler.
Consequently, the proposed emergency regulatory action should have little impact on R2 certified recyclers. All R2 certified recyclers in California should thoroughly review the new regulations, if passed, and ensure full compliance. R2 certified recyclers are expected to continue conformance with the R2 Standard, including when the R2 Standard exceeds the regulatory requirements.
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We want to hear from you! Please send along any R2 related news or information that you think would be important to share with the electronics recycling community.
Thank you!
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