Category: Illinois

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State Electronics Challenge Webinars: 11/18 Recording Available, 12/2 Webinar Scheduled

SECIntroSlideCaptureOn November 18, 2014, SEI and the Great Lakes Regional Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR)  co-sponsored a webinar, “Introduction to the State Electronics Challenge.”

Lynn Rubinstein gave an overview of the State Electronics Challenge, a voluntary national program, free of charge and open to any state, tribal, regional, or local government agency, as well as any K-12 school or non-profit organization. The SEC promotes environmental stewardship of computers, monitors, and imaging equipment — from purchasing green office equipment through power management, paper use reduction, and responsible end-of-life management — resulting in measurable reductions in energy, greenhouse gases, solid and hazardous waste, and associated costs. The goal of the webinar was to illustrate how your organization can join the Challenge and benefit from the program’s proven free technical assistance, action plan, implementation tools, and environmental benefit calculations. Lynn provided information and examples specific to Illinois and the rest of the Great Lakes region of the US, for the information of members of both GLRPPR and the UI Sustainable Electronics Campus Consortium.

The Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC), SEI’s parent organization, has joined the SEC, as has Engineering IT Shared Services here on the UI campus.

If you wish to learn how your organization or unit can join, view the archived webinar, along with slides and links to supporting materials on the GLRPPR web site. Links are also available on the UI Sustainable Electronics Campus Consortium page.  You may also wish to register for a similar introductory webinar, scheduled for December 2, 2014 for 1-2 PM CST.

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Legislation Proposed to Address Electronics Recycling Challenges in IL

Tomorrow, November 15th, is America Recycles Day (ARD), an annual celebration to raise awareness of recycling opportunities and encourage US citizens to increase their recycling, as well as to buy products made with recycled materials. Read the Presidential Proclamation on America Recycle Day 2014 at http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/11/14/presidential-proclamation-america-recycles-day-2014, and Keep America Beautiful’s ARD web site for more information.

Of course it’s very important to remember to properly recycle electronic devices for a multitude of reasons, including the reclamation of precious materials, keeping toxins out of the environment, and being conscious of the energy and other natural and human resources invested in the creation of the gadgets upon which we’re increasingly dependent. In Illinois, however, electronics recycling programs have faced challenges in 2014, resulting from the current wording of the State’s Electronic Products Reuse and Recycling Act. If you read this blog regularly, you’ve perhaps noticed announcements of cancellations of electronics collection events sponsored by counties or municipalities, or the discontinuation of certain electronics recycling services. The reasons behind many of these occurrences have to do with the fact that current IL law is meant to fully pay for residential electronics recycling, with manufacturers paying to recycle a percentage, by total weight, of covered electronic devices they sold within IL two years prior to the year in question. This is a form of extended producer responsibility. Illinois’s law, which includes a landfill ban on certain electronic devices and fines for failure to meet these recycling quotas, was heralded as one of the strictest in the country when it took effect a few years ago.

However, the weight-based quotas are currently failing to meet demand for electronics recycling, as 1) more and more electronic devices enter the waste stream, 2) electronics become increasingly smaller and lighter over time, and, 3) many older, heavier “legacy” devices, like Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) monitors and TVs, are being recycled by consumers. CRT monitors contain lead, which explains why that old computer monitor you may have stored in your basement is so darn heavy. Over time, the manufacturers’ weight-based quotas have been reached earlier and earlier in the year, and the recycled devices effectively represent less of the actual number of devices sold in the State as heavier items like CRTs are counted toward the quotas. Once those quotas are reached, manufacturers are no longer required to pay recycling contractors to process electronic devices covered under the law. So unless the companies, non-profit organizations, or local governments collecting electronic devices are willing or financially able to pay the electronics recyclers for processing, electronics recycling events or services may be discontinued after those quotas are reached. As noted in a recent Herald-News article by Lauren Leone-Cross, the Will County electronics recycling program, for example, may be in jeopardy unless legislative action is taken to address these issues.

This electronics recycling crisis has lead to the filing this week (11/12), by Representative Emily McAsey, of a proposed amendment to House Bill 4042. This amendment would increase recycling goals so that manufacturers would be required to recycle 100% of the total weight of covered electronic devices sold in Illinois during the calendar year two years prior to the applicable program year. It would also prevent local governments acting as collectors from being charged a fee by registered refurbishers or recyclers to recycle or refurbish covered and eligible electronic devices, unless they are provided either a financial incentive (such as a coupon of equal or greater value than the fee being charged) or a premium service (such as curbside collection, home pick up, or similar method of collection), the latter being more applicable for local governments. Read the full text of the proposed amendment at http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/98/HB/PDF/09800HB4042ham001.pdf.

Continue to monitor the SEI Blog and the US State & Local Legislation page on the SEI web site, for more information on this situation as it unfolds.

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Strange Magic: Electric Waste Orchestra Combines DIY, Music, and Creative Reuse of Electronics

It’s a big week for local Makerspace Urbana. One of their projects, founded by member Colten Jackson, has been featured in several blog posts this week, including one on SolidSmack.com by Simon Martin, a post for Wired by Margaret Rhodes, another on the Atmel Corporation blog, and still another by Nara Shin on Cool Hunting. On the 1st and 3rd Thursday of every month, from 7-9 PM, Champaign-Urbana area Makers can head over to the group’s space in the basement of the Independent Media Center to participate in the Electric Waste Orchestra, or EWO, turning discarded electronic parts into musical instruments.

Extending the useful life of electronic products through reuse is an important step to take before recycling, if possible, because so much energy and resources (both natural and human) go into the production of electronics in the first place. You might immediately think of donating computers to schools, letting your child inherit your old smartphone, or replacing the cracked screen on your iPhone as ways to extend electronic product life. Those are all excellent examples, but Jackson and his fellow Makers have found a more creative way to give even the most obsolete electronics a new lease on life, turning them into fantastic looking musical instruments that create haunting sounds through truly ingenious interfaces. For example, in the following YouTube video, Jackson demonstrates the use of old hard drives cobbled together in a shape reminiscent of a keytar, hooked through an Arduino to sound generation software. The instrument has an old number pad for manipulating pitch.

I can’t help but think this project could encourage lots of people to both overcome their phobia of tinkering with electronics (thereby teaching them they really do have the power to repair) and consider, perhaps for the first time, the tragedy of sending sophisticated electronics to the landfill or recycling center before their time. And even those who aren’t technically inclined could enjoy brainstorming on such projects, because who doesn’t like music? Bravo, Makerspace Urbana! Maybe a new electronic music genre will emerge (Junktronica, perhaps?).

For those who are neither musically nor technically inclined, Makerspace Urbana also hosts another project than can extend the useful life of electronics. On Sundays from 2-4 PM, their Computer Help Desk provides “free personal computer diagnostic and repair services to the community.” Through “collaborative repair” folks learn to troubleshoot and fix their computer problems alongside an more experienced volunteer.

But Makerspace Urbana certainly isn’t all about electronic device-related DIY. Check out their web site for full information on all their projects and services.

 

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ISTC Sustainability Film Festival Includes Terra Blight

As part of 2014 Earth Week celebrations on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) is hosting a Sustainability Film Festival. With support from the UI Office of Public Engagement, three documentaries will be screened at the Spurlock Museum‘s Knight Auditorium on the evenings of April 22, 23, and 24th from 6-7:30 PM: Living Downstream, Terra Blight, and Waste=Food, respectively. Admission is FREE and open to the public on a first come, first served basis; doors open at 5:30 PM. After each film, a Q&A/discussion will be held with ISTC staff and other relevant campus and community experts. Panelists will answer questions about their organizations/programs, the issues dealt with in that evening’s film, and provide guidance for the audience on what they can do to prevent pollution, avoid exposure to and release of environmental toxins, and contribute to a cleaner environment in their own lives.

Terra Blight, the film being screened on the evening of April 23, is a 55-minute documentary produced by Jellyfish Smack Productions exploring America’s consumption of computers and the hazardous waste we create in pursuit of the latest technology. According to the film makers, “The film  traces the life cycle of computers from creation to disposal and juxtaposes the disparate worlds that have computers as their center. From a 13-year-old Ghanaian who smashes obsolete monitors to salvage copper to a 3,000-person video game party in Texas, Terra Blight examines the unseen realities of one of the most ubiquitous toxic wastes on our planet. This documentary examines the intricacies of American consumerism through the story of the computer.  It exposes some of the harms of its existence, but it also celebrates the positive changes it has brought to us. By the film’s end, the audience will never look at their computer the same way again.”  See the video player below for a trailer of the film (note if you receive these posts via email subscription, the embedded media may not appear in your email message; you may view the trailer at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aZuUw2S300).

Following the film, the audience will have a chance to ask questions and participate in discussion with the following guests:

  • William Bullock, Professor of Industrial Design, School of Art + Design, Affiliated Faculty Scientist ISTC, Director, Product Innovation Research Lab. William has taught classes on e-waste issues and sustainable product design, and is the founder of the Sustainable Electronics Initiative’s International Sustainable Electronics Competition.
  • Susan Monte, Champaign County Recycling Coordinator, Champaign County Regional Planning Commission.As the recycling coordinator for the County, Susan oversees countywide collection events and promotes electronics recycling programs available through local businesses. She is also conducting research, with funding from ISTC, characterizing the current state of electronics recycling opportunities in each of Illinois’s 102 counties.
  • Courtney Rushforth, Recycling Coordinator, City of Urbana. Courtney has been actively involved in the Champaign County residential electronics collection events, and has presented data related to the County’s electronics collection efforts at past Sustainable Electronics Initiative meetings.
  • Dave Walters, Manager, Waste Reduction and Compliance Section, IL Environmental Protection Agency Bureau of Land. Dave oversees the State’s electronics recycling program, and is an expert on the development and future of the State’s electronics-related legislation.

Joy Scrogum, Co-coordinator of  SEI and Emerging Technologies Resource Specialist for ISTC, will also be present as host of the screenings and moderator for post-film discussions. In collaboration with the Technology Entrepreneur Center, Joy is currently an instructor for ENG/TE 498, Sustainable Technology: Environmental and Social Impacts of Innovations. This class introduces impacts associated with technology at each stage of the product life cycle (design, manufacture, consumption, and disposal/recovery). Electronic products are used as a case study and provide the framework for discussion of complex legal, economic, social, and environmental considerations.

DVDs of the three documentaries featured in the festival will be made available  at the Prairie Research Institute Library. The DVDs will have online activities and resource lists associated with them to enhance the educational impact of the films. For more details and information on the other films in the series, see the ISTC Blog, or contact Joy Scrogum.

To see a full list of all activities taking place during Earth Week, please visit the Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment (ISEE) web site.

 

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Reminder: Champaign County Electronics Recycling Event, April 12, 2014

Over on the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) Blog, I wrote a post about the FREE residential electronics collection event being hosted by Champaign County (IL) tomorrow (Saturday, April 12) from 8 AM to noon at Parkland College. Click here to read that post, which includes a list of acceptable and non-acceptable items, and a phone number to call with questions. If you’re not able to attend tomorrow’s event, check out the Champaign County Electronics Recycling Guide at http://www.co.champaign.il.us/county%20RRR/recycle/recycleelectronics.pdf. This document includes a list of local businesses and the electronic devices they accept for recycling year round.

If you’re outside Champaign County in IL, see the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency’s list of registered electronics collectors, recyclers, and refurbishers in Illinois at http://epadata.epa.state.il.us/land/eWaste/crr-list.asp to find businesses in your area. Check the company web sites of the electronics recyclers in your area to see who is certified as R2, e-stewards, or both, and if possible, use a certified recycler. Such recyclers have been assessed by independent third parties to verify that they are in compliance with a publicly available technical specification. For more information on certification, see http://www.sustainelectronics.illinois.edu/education/certification.cfm.

Alternatively, wherever you are located within the United States, you can visit the National Center for Electronics Recycling (NCER) website (http://www.electronicsrecycling.org/public/) and enter your zip code to find electronics take back and recycling programs in your area. The Sustainable Electronics Initiative also has a fact sheet listing many electronics take-back and donation options.

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Ecyclemania on UI Campus March 18

Remember that Tuesday, March 18th is Ecyclemania on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus. From 2-6 pm, you can drop off electronics (anything with a plug or that runs on batteries) at 3 locations, free of charge:

All e-waste collected will be recycled by a vendor that is R2 and E-steward certified. Weight of the material collected will be reported as part of the national Recyclemania competition. See Recyclemania.org for more information.

Remember, this is for personal electronics only. NO UNIVERSITY-OWNED ELECTRONICS ACCEPTED.

In an effort to reduce traffic congestion that is sometimes created by such an event, volunteers will help pick material using bicycles and carts (E-cyclers). Buildings participating in the event can begin collecting e-waste on the morning of March 18th. The E-cyclers will pick up that material and transport it to one of the collection sites. E-waste that is too heavy to transport by cart should be delivered to the ISTC vehicle drop-off.

If you have questions about the event, please contact Bart Bartels at bbartel@illinois.edu or 217-244-7572.

For more information on campus electronics recycling procedures, you can view a recording of the last UI Sustainable Electronics Campus Consortium meeting (2/19/14), and associated documents at http://www.sustainelectronics.illinois.edu/services/campusconsortium.cfm. The documents listed include a PDF of slides highlighting community recycling resources for personally-owned electronics.

Note that if you are unable to participate in the Ecyclemania collection, Champaign County will also be hosting a free residential electronics collection event on April 12 from 8AM-noon at Parkland College. For more information, call 217-328-3313.

 

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UI Sustainable Electronics Campus Consortium: Campus Electronics Recycling Procedures

The next University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign sustainable electronics campus consortium meeting will be Wednesday, February 19, from 1-2 pm in the Stephen J. Warner Conference Room at ISTC. See http://www.istc.illinois.edu/about/visitor_information.cfm for visitor information.

This meeting is focused on operations. Are you unsure of how to handle the disposal of University-owned electronics? Jeff Weaver, of University Property Accounting and Reporting, will outline the campus procedures for proper end-of-life management of electronic devices. Bart Bartels of Facilities and Services will discuss an upcoming e-waste collection event for the campus community for non-University owned devices. Information on other community electronics recycling opportunities will also be provided to raise awareness among faculty, staff and students on how to handle their personal electronics. With the time remaining, we can discuss opportunities to improve policies and diversion rates to guide future operations-related activities of this consortium.

If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, it will also be broadcast via GoToWebinar. You may register for the webinar at https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/660159455. Feel free to share this link with other interested parties.

The sustainable electronics campus consortium is a project of the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center’s Sustainable Electronics Initiative (SEI; www.sustainelectronics.illinois.edu). To learn more about the campus consortium, see http://www.sustainelectronics.illinois.edu/services/campusconsortium.cfm or contact Joy Scrogum at jscrogum@illinois.edu or 217-333-8948.

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University of Illinois Special Topics Course Focuses on Sustainable Electronics

During the Spring 2014 semester, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign students will have the opportunity to take a special topics course related to sustainable electronics.

Entitled Sustainable Technology: Environmental and Social Impacts, ENG/TE 498 is a collaboration of the College of Engineering’s Technology Entrepreneur Center and the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center’s Sustainable Electronics Initiative (SEI). TEC’s Dr. Brian Lilly is the professor of record, and ISTC’s Joy Scrogum and Kirsten Walker are instructors.

The class introduces the environmental and social impacts associated with technology at each stage of the product life cycle (design, manufacture, consumption, and disposal/recovery). Electronic products will be used as a case study and provide the framework for discussion of complex legal, economic, social, and environmental considerations.

Planned outcomes are to provide students with:

  • training in the sort of “systems thinking” required to recognize and address potential environmental and social impacts associated with technologies they use and develop.
  • an introduction to the concept of the product life cycle and life cycle analysis
  • an opportunity to hear from experts in the fields of sustainable electronic product development, electronics recycling and end-of-life management
  • an appreciation for the perspectives of various stakeholders
  • an appreciation for the complexity and breadth of issues surrounding electronics
  • the inspiration to apply concepts of sustainable product design, use, and end-of-life management in their personal lives and careers.

Students will complete weekly assignments, typically involving responses to required reading material. A brief mid-term paper and a final project will also be required.

Day & location: Mondays, 10:00-11:50 a.m., Room 1302, Thomas M. Siebel Center for Computer Science

To register, UIUC students should look in the online course catalog under ENG 498 or TE 498, Special Topics. For more information, contact Joy Scrogum at jscrogum@illinois.edu.

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Champaign County Electronics Collection Event October 12, 2013

This post was written by ISTC staff member Kirsten Walker.


Do you have electronics piling up in your garage or other storage area? Wonder what you can do with them? You are in luck. The Champaign County Electronics Collection event is coming up on October 12, 2013. This is a free drop off for specific items such as: televisions, computers and laptops, computer monitors, keyboards, mice, cables, printers and scanners, radio and stereos, VCRs and DVD Players, mobile phones, office electronics, digital camera, communication devices, microwaves, and gaming systems.  There is a limit of 10 items per resident.  Many recyclers have stopped accepting TVs and computer monitors because of the problem of proper recycling of the CRT (leaded glass) in those units, so this event is a perfect opportunity to get rid of those items now. The event is being held at 3202 Apollo Drive (News-Gazette Distribution Center) in Champaign from 8 a.m. to 12 noon and will be held rain or shine. If you participate in the county’s recycling survey, you could enter to win a $50 Amazon gift card. Visit http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SBR5MXB to complete the survey. For more information on the Illinois landfill ban, please see the Illinois IEPA website.

There are other businesses that accept electronics during the year including: Goodwill (912 W. Anthony Drive, Champaign, 217.359.8729 and  111 Calvin Street, Savoy, 217.290.1864), Habitat for Humanity ReStore (119 E. University Avenue, Champaign, 217.355.6460), Marco Steel* (302 S. Market Street, Champaign, 217.352.4707), Mack’s Twin City Recycling* (2808 N. Lincoln Avenue, Urbana, 217.328.2100), Green Purpose* (807 Pioneer Street, Champaign, 217.954.1450), Best Buy* (2117 N. Prospect Avenue, Champaign, 217.352.8883), Office Depot* (111 Convenience Center, Champaign, 217.373.5202), Staples* ( 2005 N. Prospect Avenue, Champaign, (217.373.8490). There are restriction on items accepted at locations with an asterisk (*), so it is advisable to call first.

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Champaign County (IL) Residential Electronics Collection – April 20th

This post was written by ISTC staff member Kirsten Walker.

The first of two 2013 Countywide Residential Electronics Collections will take place in Champaign, IL on Saturday, April 20.

Got an old TV, computer monitor, or other electronic items not being used anymore?  Area residents are invited to bring old or unwanted electronic items to the upcoming Countywide Residential Electronics Collection to have these items responsibly recycled or refurbished.  Several teams of community service volunteers will be on hand to unload electronic items from residents’ vehicles.  No fees will be collected from persons dropping off items.

The collection will occur, rain or shine, on Saturday, April 20, from 8:00 am to noon at The News-Gazette Distribution Center located at 3202 Apollo Drive in Champaign.  Access to the Distribution Center is at the intersection of North Market Street and East Olympian Drive.

Electronics to be accepted at the April 20 collection include:  televisions, computers, laptops, computer monitors, printers, scanners, keyboards, mice, cables, zip drives, fax machines, PDA’s, video game consoles, mobile phones, microwave ovens, and VCR/DVD/ MP3 players.

Most electronic items contain metals such as lead, cadmium, and mercury that are harmful to the environment unless responsibly managed.  As of January 1, 2012, televisions, monitors, computers, printers and several other electronic items have been banned from Illinois landfills.

Area governments and private sponsors including The News Gazette, support the 2013 Countywide Residential Electronics Collection as a public service to area residents now that the Illinois landfill ban on electronics is in effect. The Collection also provides a means to educate the public about the local options available to recycle or refurbish electronic items.  “We get the word out that convenient and no cost local options are available to residents to responsibly recycle electronics such as TV’s, computers, and monitors,” said Susan Monte, Champaign County Recycling Coordinator.

Information about the upcoming collection on April 20 is available on the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) website at www.ccrpc.org.  Persons may also contact CCRPC at 217-328-3313 with questions about the collection.