Secure Data Eradication

Many companies share the goal of going “green”. However, there is hesitation to actively pursue this goal due to concern for their intellectual property being accessed or distributed around the world. A recent article in PC World magazine stated that IT managers were "twice as concerned about data security as they are about being green" since any neglect in data security could potentially cost a company millions of dollars in damages.

Raident Technology has acknowledged such fears when developing the service of data security. The company not only provides data eradication of hard drives but also provides complete destruction of proprietary materials such as: hard drives, memory and motherboards.

Account Manager Aisha Wahab stated that “Raident’s solution of destruction is the most secure way to provide data security due to our secure facility and the ability to go on site for the customer’s benefit since the material does not have to leave the property while being destroyed”. She goes on to say that “all the material that Raident receives is recycled and destroyed with the most stringent environmental standards in mind”.

The company’s state of the art data eradication lab provides the added benefit of the possible reuse of the hard drives after the data has been removed. Wahab mentions that “the lab incorporates advanced technology which allows clients to see the movement of their assets from pick up to final disposal.” Raident has understood and addressed this common concern to ensure that IT managers are able to contribute to society as a “green” company without any fears.

Source: PC World.com, March 29, 2009

How the companies line up

We first released our 'Guide to Greener Electronics' in August 2006. The guide ranks the 17 top manufacturers of personal computers, mobile phones, TV's and games consoles according to their policies on toxic chemicals, recycling and climate change.

10 is the best and 0 is the worst rank.

7.45 Nokia -- Scores top marks for leading competitors on toxic phase out.
7.1 Samsung -- Holds second position for commitment to reduce absolute emissions.
6.5 Sony Ericsson -- Up two places with better product energy efficiency reporting
5.7 LG Electronics -- Up two places but needs to eliminate hazardous chemicals from all products
5.5 Toshiba -- Moves up two places with an extra point for promising to cut GHGs
5.5 Motorola -- Scores higher and climbs two places because of use of renewable energy
5.3 Philips -- Falls from 4th to 7th position and needs to put its commitment to responsible recycling policies into practice
5.3 Sharp -- Rises from 9th to joint 7th place with its energy efficient products
4.9 Acer -- Put 16 new models of a monitor that are almost free of hazardous chemicals and climbed two places from 11 to 9 but still need to sort out the power cord
4.9 Panasonic -- Advance from 12th to 10th place for energy efficiency and pvc free product range but still bad on e waste
4.7 Apple -- Drop one position to 11th with no change in scores but get kudos for their green macbook
4.5 Sony -- Plunges from 5th to 12th place for inadequate commitments on eliminating hazardous chemicals, e waste policy and cutting GHGs
3.9 Dell -- Stays at 13th place because of backtracking on toxics phase out
3.5 HP -- Is at 14th position and has no products on the market free of toxic substances
2.5 Microsoft -- Loses a point for a poor recycling policy but stays in 15th position
2.5 Lenovo -- Down two places with no set timeline for toxics phase out on all products
2.4 Fujitsu -- Debuts second from last with no products that are free of hazardous chemicals
1.0 Nintendo -- Stays put in last position with a glimmer of hope with partially pvc free consoles

###

Source: Greenpeace, July 1, 2009

Light at the end of the tunnel for consumer electronics?

Market research firm Gartner Inc. is predicting that the consumer IT sector should begin to recover as early as the fourth quarter of this year, with sustained recovery emerging in the second half of 2010. PC shipments are on pace to be six-percent lower in 2009, coming in at a projected 274 million units; however, the company believes the PC market has essentially bottomed out and should post positive growth in the last quarter of the year.

Reduced prices for new PCs and increased demand for lightweight notebooks, netbooks and smart phones are buoying the consumer electronics industry. In fact, mobile phones are projected to be the first to see a sustainable recovery in the first half of next year, according to the company. Mobile PC shipments for 2009 (notebooks and netbooks) are expected to increase 4.1 percent over 2008, reaching 149 million units worldwide. Comparatively, shipments of desktop units are predicted to be down 15.7 percent, due both to consumers' growing preference for portability, and business' reluctance to upgrade IT assets during the recession.

A particularly bright spot in this trend involves Acer, as the Taiwanese manufacturer is poised to overtake Dell this year, snatching the number two spot for PC sales. Thanks in large part to a 2000 shift in company strategy to focus on portable computer and retail partnerships, Acer's market share grew to 11.6 percent in the first quarter of the year — within striking distance of Dell's declining 13.6 percent.

Also on the horizon, the much-anticipated arrival of Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system is unlikely to jumpstart sales of new units and PC upgrades, unlike the release of previous operating systems. Although most PC users are eager for a replacement for the widely-panned Vista OS, Windows 7 utilizes virtually identical system requirements, meaning no new hardware is necessary for the upgrade.

###

Source: Resource Recycling, July, 2009

Mixed News for E-scrap Metals

According to Purchasing.com, a recent spike in copper prices is unlikely to last and is due primarily to speculative investment. Citing a lack of fundamental industrial demand by any of the major consuming nations, the commodity-watchers predict copper will fall back below $2 per pound in the coming months, with an average of between $1.70 and $1.83 likely for 2009. Global demand is down approximately 11.1 percent compared to 2008, where copper averaged $3.15 per pound.

Gold, by comparison, is up over 10 percent for the year, due in large part to investors flocking to the commodity as stocks lost value. Despite a recent 1.9 percent monthly drop for June deliveries, gold was still trading at $964.50 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The price of silver is also up for the year, by about 40 percent. July delivery fell 64.5 cents on the Comex, but was still trading at $15.31 an ounce.

###

Source: EScrap News, June 4th, 2009

EPEAT Turns New Tool on TVs

A consortium of television manufacturers, retailers, environmental groups and government agencies are working together to create a standard measuring the environmental impact of televisions.

The standard, which is tentatively called EPEAT-for-TV, is being led by the Green Electronics Council, through the IEEE Standards Association, and would reportedly be similar to the EPEAT metric currently in use for personal computers.

The new standard defines "environmental performance for televisions, television combination units, and component television units, relating to reduction or elimination of environmentally-sensitive materials, materials selection, design for end-of-life, lifecycle extension, energy conservation, end-of-life management, corporate performance, packaging, and other performance categories," all to be determined by the group working on the tool.

The rating system — purported to be have been met with considerable resistance from manufacturers — is expected to appear on televisions, in retail stores, in 18-to-24 months.

###

Source: Esrap News, June 4th, 2009

Texas Governor to Decide on Television Takeback Bill

May 28 -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry will have on his desk a bill requiring television manufacturers to provide Texas residents with free and convenient recycling for their old units.

The state Senate unanimously passed the Television TakeBack Bill, which calls on TV makers to fund the collection and recycling of old televisions. Earlier this month, the Texas House of Representatives passed the measure.

State Rep. David Leibowitz, a Democrat from San Antonio, Texas, authored the bill. Sen. Kirk Watson, a Democrat from Austin, Texas, sponsored it in the Senate.

Proponents of the bill say it will help keep the 4 to 8 pounds of lead in cathode-ray tube televisions and the mercury in flat-screen TVs out of the environment. Televisions also contain brominated fire retardants and other hazardous chemicals.

###

Source: Waste and Recycling News, June 3rd, 2009

Electronic Scrap Bill Loophole Draws Groups´ Opposition

June 2 -- Environmental groups and some electronics recyclers are opposed to a federal electronic scrap bill that would allow recyclers to export units to developing countries for repair or refurbishing.

Rep. Gene Green, D-Texas, introduced House Resolution 2595 in U.S. House of Representatives. The measure is aimed at prohibiting exports of certain types of electronic scrap. But it does not go far enough, according to the Electronics TakeBack Coalition and the Basel Action Network.

"We need Congress to take action to close the door on the global dumping of e-waste," said Barbara Kyle, national coordinator for the Electronics TakeBack Coalition. "But this bill has a huge loophole that will allow recyclers to continue to export our old e-waste to developing countries by claiming that it´s going for repair or refurbishment."

Recyclers could ship outdated and nonworking units simply by claiming they intended them for repair or reuse, said Neil Peters-Michaud, CEO of electronics recycler Cascades Asset Management.

"This bill will do little to stem the tide of the thousands of containers of e-waste junk shipped to developing countries each month," he said.

###

Source: Waste and Recycling News, June 3rd, 2009

Senator Proposes Bill to Create $250 Million in WTE Grants

May 29 -- A U.S. senator wants to give waste-to-energy projects around the country a multi-million-dollar boost.

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, unveiled plans to introduce legislation to create a $250 million competitive grant program that would provide up to $5 million to individual projects.

His Rubbish to Renewables Act of 2009 would require that the U.S. Department of Energy oversee the funding program.

"One man´s trash can be another man´s source of clean energy," Brown said.

Brown spoke at an existing landfill gas project at the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio on May 28 near Columbus to unveil his idea.

###

Source: Waste and Recycling News, June 3rd, 2009.

Export Bill Faces Unlikely Opponents

A bill to restrict the export of potentially hazardous electronic waste was introduced by Rep. Gene Green (D-Texas) on May 22nd, but is already facing some unlikely opposition. Several environmental watchdog agencies have pounced on House Resolution 2595, claiming the measure contains significant loopholes that would undermine current efforts by companies, such as Dell, to manage e-scrap responsibly.

"The idea was originally to ban e-waste exports," said Electronics TakeBack Coalition National Coordinator Barbara Kyle. "We want Congress to act on this issue, but this bill contains a big loophole that allows for items to be exported for repair and refurbishment."

Developing countries heavily rely on used and refurbished computer and IT equipment for their economic, educational and medical needs; however, repeated instances of non-working and waste electronics being exported under a dubious refurbishability claims have soured many in the environmental community on the practice.

"Of course we're in favor of re-use and refurbishment," explained Kyle, "but we'd like to see a bill that supports it in the U.S. It would be a way to provide good jobs for Americans and ensure that countries get the working units they need."

###

Source: E-Scrap News, May 27th, 2009

EPA Released First Energy Star Requirements for Servers

May 18 -- The U.S. EPA has unveiled its first Energy Star requirements for computer servers.

The new standards are designed to protect the environment and result in significant energy savings, according to the agency. On average, computer servers that earn the Energy Star label will be 30 percent more energy efficient than standard servers.

If all servers sold in the United States meet this new specification, energy cost savings would grow to $800 million per year and prevent greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from more 1 million vehicles, according to the EPA.

Computer servers that earn the Energy Star label will include: efficient power supplies; improved power quality, capabilities to measure real time power use, processor utilization, and air temperature; advanced power management features to save energy, and a power and performance data sheet for purchasers that standardizes key information on energy performance, features and other capabilities.

More information on the new specification and all EPA’s data center initiatives is available at www.energystar.gov/datacenters.

###

Source: Waste & Recycling News, May 18th, 2009

San Francisco Achieves 72% Recycling Rate in 2007

May 13 -- San Francisco achieved the nation´s highest recycling rate at 72% in 2007, according to Mayor Gavin Newsom.

The city has a goal of 75% landfill diversion by 2010 and said a construction and demolition debris recycling ordinance passed in 2006 is helping push the percentages higher each year, the city said.

"By requiring builders to recycle debris from construction projects, we were able to divert tens of thousands of new tons of material away from the landfill," Newsom said. "Clearly, mandatory recycling measures pay off."

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Source: Waste and Recycling News, May 14th, 2009

Administration Increases EPA´s Budget by 34% for 2010

May 8 -- The Obama administration´s proposed budget for fiscal year 2010 includes $10.5 billion in funding for the Environmental Protection Agency, a 34% increase compared with 2009 funding. The agency is receiving $7.8 billion for the current fiscal year.

More than one-third of the 2010 budget -- $3.9 billion -- would go toward improving the nation´s water and wastewater infrastructure, according to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, who discussed the budget during a telephone news conference May 7.

The budget also would allocate $475 million for the multi-agency Great Lakes Initiative to protect and clean up the lakes and control invasive species.

The EPA would receive $17 million for creating a greenhouse gas registry, a first step toward limiting emissions of the gases. The agency will receive an additional $2 million to reduce its own greenhouse gas emissions.

The Superfund program would receive $1.3 billion to increase the number of hazardous waste sites eligible for cleanup. Also, beginning in 2011, the federal government plans to reinstate the Superfund tax on businesses. The ax would generate $1 billion of revenue a year, rising to $2 billion a year by 2019, Jackson said.

The budget also proposes $175 million for the brownfields program.

And the EP plans to have enough money to hire 30 additional enforcement staff members in the EPA´s Enforcement and Compliance Assurance program.

"EPA´s new budget reflects the president´s commitment to growing a clean energy economy while protecting human health and the environment," Jackson said.

Details about President Obama´s proposed fiscal year 2010 EPA budget -- which will next go to Congress -- is available online at www.epa.gov/budget.

###

Source: Waste & Recycling News, May 11, 2009

Raident Technology, Inc. Passed ISO 9001 & 14001 Certification Audit

http://www.pr.com/press-release/148974

Since passing ISO Quality and Environmental standards, Raident has improved its quality of operations.

Fremont, CA, May 01, 2009 --(PR.com)-- Raident Technology, Inc. has passed ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certification audit in April of 2009 through ABS Quality Evaluations. Raident will now only be using the ISO standard in managing its Quality (QMS) and Environmental (EMS) systems/operations.

Passing the ISO 9001, Raident Technology was able to improve the quality of its operations by making all external and internal processes more transparent. All the quality related documentation such as procedures, forms, work instructions, and other documents are approved prior to their use.

Raident’s ISO Manager, Natalia Kleschevnikova, feels that “Raident Technology is moving in the correct direction. Raident will be able to achieve all its business goals and targets through excellent customer service and continuous improvement in QMS and EMS. Raident will always promote employee training to make sure they’re qualified to do their jobs.”

ISO 14001 improved Raident’s Environmental operations. Environmental objectives and targets were set to track continuous improvement. Special environmental procedures were also developed and integrated into Raident’s operations to make it more applicable to the asset recovery industry, Raident’s clients, and future prospects. EMS will also help control environmental impact and track environmental performance.

President and CEO of Raident Technology, Albert Lozano, acknowledged, “the hard work everyone at Raident has put in to pass ISO certification. It really shows everyone’s dedication at Raident” and continued to say that “Raident is thankful to all its employees, management, and auditors that ISO audits went well.”

About Raident Technology, Inc.
From its corporate headquarters in Silicon Valley, Raident Technology was founded to deliver value-added asset management, asset recovery and electronic eWaste recycling solutions. Raident is on a fast-track growth strategy to expand its processing capacity, by both organic means and acquisitions, and to establish a leading position in the global market. It is a member of key industry groups and committed to protecting the environment while providing high-quality, customer specific services. In a fragmented market crowded with small, unsophisticated operations, Raident remains a trusted and respected resource.

###
Contact Information
Raident Technology, Inc.
Natalia Kleschevnikova
(510) 656-3622 x 109
natalia@raident.com
www.raident.com
www.raident.blogspot.com

Raident Technology Introduces a New Generation Hard Drive Testing and Wiping Lab

Raident Technology has just built a next generation lab to test and wipe hard drives that will be available for tracking 24/7 through Raident’s web based system.

http://www.pr.com/press-release/148376

Fremont, CA, April 29, 2009 --(PR.com)-- Raident Technology, has introduced a new lab for testing and wiping hard drives faster without jeopardizing information security. The new lab has state of the art capabilities that can test and wipe up to 500 hard drives at any time while all the results are automatically collected and inputted into Raident's eAudit tracking system. Together, the new lab and eAudit allow more accurate results at faster transfer of data.

Raident's President and CEO stated that "the new system uses the latest technology, which allows us to provide maximum data security." The customized software records all hard drive specifications, such as manufacturer, serial number, density (in GB) and so on, as well as results of wiping and wipe-verification. The results will be uploaded to Raident's database, and customers can view the results 24/7 in "real-time*" via eAudit system.

Raident's ability to test and erase hard drives is "scalable, there is no limit to Raident's current testing and wiping capacity. The system can easily be duplicated to handle much larger volumes," stated Raident's General Manager, Kenneth Ha.

(* Maximum of 2-minute delays)


About Raident Technology, Inc.:
From its corporate headquarters in Silicon Valley, Raident Technology was founded to deliver value-added asset management, asset recovery, and electronic e-Waste recycling solutions. Raident is on a fast-track growth strategy to expand its processing capacity, by both organic means and acquisitions, and to establish a leading position in the global market. It is a member of key industry groups and is committed to protecting the environment while providing high-quality, customer-specific services. In a fragmented market crowded with small, unsophisticated operations, Raident remains a trusted and respected resource.


###
Contact Information
Raident Technology, Inc.
Natalia Kleschevnikova
(510) 656-3622 x 109
natalia@raident.com
www.raident.com
www.raident.blogspot.com

EPA Designates $600 Million in New Funding to Clean Up Sites

April 16 -- The U.S. EPA has unveiled $600 million in new funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for the cleanup of hazardous waste sites across the nation.

The funding will accelerate cleanup already under way at most sites and fund some new cleanup projects. It also will jumpstart local economies by creating jobs, according to the EPA.

The federal Superfund program has cleaned up hazardous waste sites since 1980, dealing with properties that pose unacceptable risks to human health and the environment.

The Superfund program is implementing new or expanded cleanup actions at 50 sites around the country with recovery act funds.

###

Source: Waste & Recycling News, April 27, 2009

ISRI endorses Electronic Device Recycling Research Act

March 26 -- The Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries has endorsed House Resolution 1580, also known as the Electronic Device Recycling Research and Development Act.

The House Committee on Science and Technology has agreed to send the bill forward for consideration by the full House.

The bill would authorize the Environmental Protection Agency to award grants for electronic device recycling research, development, and demonstration projects, and for other purposes.

In a letter to Committee Chairman Bart Gordon , D-Tenn., ISRI expressed its support for the measure as amended by the committee.

ISRI is the national trade association that represents 1,500 companies which process, broker, and consume scrap commodities, including electronics, paper, metals, plastics, glass, rubber, and textiles.

###

Source: Waste & Recycling News, March 26th, 2009

China Enacts E-Scrap Law

Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao signed into law the "Recycling Waste Electrical and Electronic Products Ordinance," being compared by some to the European Union's WEEE Directive.

The new law, based on draft legislation released last summer, appears to cover (here is a Google translation for a FAQ for the law) most electronic and electrical equipment from TVs to air conditioners, though it does not offer a full list of covered devices.

The ordinance also surprisingly acknowledges the country's infamous workshops, noting the environmental damage done by the open burning and acid baths used in metals recovery at the workshops. Further, it reportedly bans any such demanufacturing methods.

A special fund — the National Electronics Discarded Electrical Products Treatment Fund — is set up to pay for the regulation of the end-of-life electronic and electrical goods, to be financed by fees levied on manufacturers and importers of electronic goods. Sellers of consumer electronics appear to be on the hook to provide drop-off locations.

The ordinance will come into effect January 1, 2011.

###

Source: E-Scrap News, March 12, 2009

Problem with Old Technology?

Raident Technology Introduces New Mobile Electronics Shredding System

Fremont, CA, February 28, 2009 --(PR.com)-- Many companies today are very concerned with information security. They are facing issues of unauthorized access, use, disclosure, or disruption of private information. The only way to protect information is to securely destroy the data.

Account Manager Aisha Wahab stated that “Raident Technology has invested into technology to protect each client’s proprietary information. Per clients’ request it can implement 100% secure destruction of material that contains important data.” Wahab continued to explain that this is a beneficial service that Raident can provide to each client.

With an economic down-turn due to higher unemployment there is more criminal enterprise. Raident doesn’t want its clients to lose consumer confidence and/or sales, damage their reputation and have civil lawsuits and fines. Hard drives, tape drives, cassettes, CDs and other sources of information are the number one sources of information that should be destroyed to prevent unauthorized use of private information. Victor Diaz stated that “with a larger mobile shredder in addition to those that we already have, we are able to destroy whole computers and other material in the most secure way possible.”

Protecting Raident’s customers from leaks of secure information, Raident Technology has bought a mid-size mobile shredder. The shredder is big enough to destroy all electronic components (i.e. hard drives, boards, CPUs, etc.), tape drives, modems, cassettes, CDs, documents and more. For even more security Raident is able to do it on the clients’ sites so they could see items being shredded for themselves.

About Raident Technology, Inc.:
From its corporate headquarters in Silicon Valley, Raident Technology was founded to deliver value-added asset management, asset recovery, and electronic e-Waste recycling solutions. Raident is on a fast-track growth strategy to expand its processing capacity, by both organic means and acquisitions, and to establish a leading position in the global market. It is a member of key industry groups and is committed to protecting the environment while providing high-quality, customer-specific services. In a fragmented market crowded with small, unsophisticated operations, Raident remains a trusted and respected resource.

###
Contact Information
Raident Technology, Inc.
Natalia Kleschevnikova
(510) 656-3622 x 109
natalia@raident.com
www.raident.com
www.raident.blogspot.com

Raident Technology, Inc. Will Go Through an ISO Audit in April of 2009

Raident Technology, Inc. has recently announced a scheduled ISO 9001 and 14001 certification audit for April of 2009.

Fremont, CA, February 27, 2009 --(PR.com)-- ISO stands for the International Organization for Standardization. ISO 9001 is the Quality Management System (QMS) Standard and ISO 14001 is the Environmental Management System (EMS) Standard. By being compliant with these ISO standards, Raident Technology will differentiate itself from the rest of the asset recovery companies. Raident’s compliance will assure clients of an effective QMS and EMS that will exceed their requirements in the areas of environment and quality.

Natalia Kleschevnikova, Raident’s ISO Manager, stated “that Raident always has and will continue to improve its standards of compliance in order to be the best full service vendor for its clients.”

Enforced QMS standards will greatly improve Raident’s operations, performance and even profitability, while stricter EMS standards will identify and control the environmental impact of Raident’s activities and will continually improve its environmental performance. By following these two standards Raident Technology will be setting quality and environmental objectives and targets that will promote continuous improvement.

President and CEO of Raident Technology, Albert Lozano, acknowledged “the hard work everyone at Raident has put in to make the ISO certification possible really shows the level of commitment that everyone at Raident has” and continues to say that Raident is hopeful that the ISO audit goes well.

About Raident Technology, Inc.:
From its corporate headquarters in Silicon Valley, Raident Technology was founded to deliver value-added asset management, asset recovery, and electronic e-Waste recycling solutions. Raident is on a fast-track growth strategy to expand its processing capacity, by both organic means and acquisitions, and to establish a leading position in the global market. It is a member of key industry groups and is committed to protecting the environment while providing high-quality, customer-specific services. In a fragmented market crowded with small, unsophisticated operations, Raident remains a trusted and respected resource.

###

Contact Information:
Raident Technology, Inc.
Natalia Kleschevnikova
(510) 656-3622 x 109
natalia@raident.com
www.raident.com
www.raident.blogspot.com

EPA to Decide Who Must Provide Assurances in Cleanups

Feb. 27 -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency must begin the process of determining which industries and facilities must provide financial assurances to cleanup potentially hazardous sites.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco denied the EPA´s summary judgment motion to dismiss the plaintiffs´ case, which calls on the EPA to require financial assurances under the Superfund program from companies whose sites are the most environmentally harmful.

Environmental law firm Earthjustice is suing the agency on behalf of the Sierra Club and several other groups. They claim the EPA has shirked its duty to promulgate and implement financial assurance.

Section 108(b) of the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act required the federal government to identify classes of facilities, owners and operators for which it would first develop financial requirements, based on the highest risk of harm, no later than three years after Dec. 11, 1980.

The federal government has yet to do so. The court ordered the EPA to publish a notice of the classes in the Federal Registry. It will then look into whether the EPA is required to promulgate and implement financial assurance.

"Instead, the court will hold these issues in abeyance pending EPA´s publication of notice of classes as the court believes this will shed light on the merits of the other challenged duties under Section 108(b)," District Court Judge William Alsup said in his decision.

Conversely, the court also granted the U.S. Department of Transportation and its interveners their request for summary judgment. It ruled the plaintiffs failed to establish that they suffered injury traceable to the DOT´s action or inaction, and the department is not responsible for implementing financial assurances.

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Source: Waste & Recycling News, Feb. 27th, 2009

President Obama Nominates Attorney as EPA Deputy Administrator

Feb. 25 -- President Obama has nominated an attorney and professor of environmental law to be the new deputy administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Jon Cannon, director of the Environmental and Land Use Law Program at the University of Virginia, would serve in the No. 2 spot at the EPA under Lisa Jackson, the new administrator. Cannon worked in numerous positions at the EPA during the Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Clinton administrations. He eventually rose to serve as the EPA´s general counsel, but previously worked on legal issues involving civil enforcement, solid waste and emergency response.

Cannon earned his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, and received a bachelor´s degree from Williams College in Williamstown, Mass.

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Source: Waste & Recycling News, Feb. 25, 2009

TV Sales vs. DTV Transition

According to industry analysts, the fourth quarter of 2008 saw global TV shipments drop and 2009 may bring the first decline in PC sales since 2001.

Global shipments of televisions dropped 5% in the last quarter of 2008, the first year-over-year decline in over two years, according to market research firm DisplaySearch. Shipments of televisions during the fourth quarter, at 57.7 million, dropped from more than 60 million shipped during the same period in 2007.
Research firm IDC expects the current recession will continue to adversely affect the PC market as well. IDC's Loren Loverde said that the firm's most recent forecast for 2009 — four-percent growth — will likely not be met. "As things sink in, it could easily be in negative territory," said Loverde.

Further news on the ongoing saga of the conversion to over-the-air digital television transmission. Though a sizable backlog still exists for DTV converter box coupons, the National telecommunications Information Administration said it can clear the four-million-strong waiting list in the next two to three weeks. The recently-passed $789 billion federal stimulus package contained monies to restart the DTV box coupons, enabling the NTIA to ramp up sending them out to consumers.

Meanwhile, the much-ballyhooed TV "tsunami" has yet to reach its predicted point break, there are reports of analog TVs hitting the secondary market with increasing regularity. More than 400 of the approximately 1,800 broadcast television stations nationwide already have made the conversion. With that, the Federal Communications Commission has also mandated that at least one of the top four network affiliates — ABC, CBS, NBC or FOX — broadcast in analog in each market until the new June 12th DTV cutoff date.

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Source: E-Scrap News, Feb. 20, 2009

Stiumulus Plan Includes $7.22B for EPA Programs

Feb. 20 - The $787 billion economic recovery plan signed by President Obama Feb. 17 includes $7.22 billion for projects and programs administered by the EPA.

The Obama administration estimates the entire package will create 3 million to 4 million jobs with many protecting public health and the environment.

"Through the president´s stimulus package, green initiatives will play a significant role in powering economic recovery," EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson said.

The stimulus bill includes funding for the following EPA-administered programs:

-- The Clean Water State Revolving Fund and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund will receive $4 billion to help communities with water quality and wastewater infrastructure needs and $2 billion for drinking water infrastructure needs.

-- The Brownfields program will receive $100 million for competitive grants to evaluate and clean up former industrial and commercial sites

-- Diesel emissions reduction efforts will receive $300 million for grants and loans to help regional, state and local governments, tribal agencies, and non-profit organizations with projects that reduce diesel emissions

-- The Superfund hazardous waste cleanup program gets $600 million

-- The Leaking Underground Storage Tank program gets $200 million for the cleanup of petroleum leaks.

The EPA intends to move designated funds to the states as quickly as possible, according to the agency. All funding will be monitored by the EPA Inspector General´s Office, which will receive $20 million for oversight and review.

The EPA will post announcements of grants on the Web to ensure transparency. The state-by-state distributions for clean water and drinking water state revolving funds will also be available on the Web at www.epa.gov/recovery.

#

Source: "Waste & Recycling News", Feb. 20th, 2009

PWB Value Makes Small Step Up in January

The gross value of printed wiring board scrap in January 2009 was $3.68 per pound, up 5.6 percent over December 2008 numbers. The PWB value was down 16.7 percent from the same period a year ago.
This data represents the full metallic values of boards over time and are not the recycling values, as those values do not include the costs involved in actually extracting metal from boards, including freight, sampling charges, assay assessments, smelting, refining, process loss, return on investment, and penalties for various elements, including beryllium, bismuth and nickel.

These values are for the estimated intrinsic metal content of recovered PC boards. Some consumers label such material as mid-value. Lower-value scrap includes monitor and television boards. Higher-value scrap includes network and video cards, and motherboards.

The average value of board scrap for all of 2008 was $4.31 per pound, up 16.5 percent from 2007, though the increase can be misleading, as prices collapsed in the second half of 2008.

###

Source: E-Scrap News, Feb. 13th, 2009

EPA Challenges to Recycle More TVs

Feb. 13 -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is challenging retailers and television makers to collect and recycle more TVs.

The challenge is part of the agency´s Plug-In to eCycling program and will run through August. Manufacturers and retailers can enter their recovery programs and the EPA will evaluate them and recognize the most innovative and effective initiative.

Americans discarded nearly 27 million televisions in 2007 and had an additional 99 million sitting around in places like closets, basements and garages, according to the EPA. More information about the challenge is available at www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/ecycling/tv-challenge.htm.

DTV Transition Day Moved

Citing opposition from Republicans, the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee canceled its Wednesday meeting to consider legislation to delay the digital television (DTV) transmission deadline. The bill in question extends the transition date from February 17th to June 12th.

In a brief statement about the vote cancellation, committee chair Henry Waxman (D-California) again stated date-change advocates' position. "The transition to digital television is not going well. There is not enough money for the converter box coupon program and millions of Americans could experience serious problems," said Waxman. "Delay of the deadline is our only hope of lessening the impact on millions of consumers. Without a short, one-time extension, millions of households will lose all television reception."

One of the bill's opponents, Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.), claims that he would accept a short delay, only if the legislation allowed public safety organizations to access the analog TV spectrum per the original transition date's plans.

According to a recent Digital Tech Consulting report, there are enough DTV converters available for the estimated number of people that need them.

"We believe there is ample supply of nearly nine million boxes in retail warehouses and store shelves ready for an onslaught of last-minute buyers," said Myra Moore, project manager for DTC.

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Source: E-Scrap News, January 23rd, 2009.

ISRI Acquires Assets of IAER

Jan. 15 -- The Institute of Recycling Industries has acquired the assets of the International Association of Electronics Recyclers.

The merge will unify the electronics recycling industry and strengthen ISRI´s new Electronics Division, said Robin Wiener, ISRI president.

The groups will unite their lobbying efforts in Congress, which will be more effective, she said. Their educational and training programs also will become more robust and valuable.

All IAER members who qualify for ISRI membership will receive it. Those that don´t, such as nonprofit groups, will receive a refund of the remaining portion of their IAER membership. As a welcome gesture, IAER members will join ISRI at their IAER dues levels through the middle of this year.

The IAER Electronics Recycling Summit will be held in conjunction with ISRI´s annual convention, which will be held, April 26-30, in Las Vegas. IAER´s Web site content will be transferred to ISRI´s site.

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Source: Waste and Recycling News, Jan. 15

Raident Technology Launches a New E-Waste News Blog

Raident Technology, Inc. has officially launched their eWaste News blog at http://raident.blogspot.com. The Raident eWaste blog is updated frequently with the latest industry news regarding current laws, regulations and events.

Fremont, CA, January 11, 2009 --(PR.com)-- Raident Technology has consistently improved their communication with the public as well as their asset recovery and electronic waste solutions. The main goal for the blog is “to keep the public as well as our OEM clients informed about the changes around the world regarding laws and news on electronic waste” stated Aisha Wahab, an Account Manager at Raident. Raident “prides itself on being a step ahead and well prepared for any changes in our industry” Miss Wahab added.

Overall, this is a blog that allows people to read the latest news, leave comments and share the news they read through e-mail. Natalia Kleschevnikova stated that Raident “is excited about sharing their knowledge with the world and the blog allows us to do just that. So come and follow our blog.”

About Raident Technology, Inc.
From its corporate headquarters in Silicon Valley, Raident Technology was founded to deliver value-added asset management, asset recovery and electronic eWaste recycling solutions. Raident is on a fast-track growth strategy to expand its processing capacity, by both organic means and acquisitions, and to establish a leading position in the global market. It is a member of key industry groups and committed to protecting the environment while providing high-quality, customer specific services. In a fragmented market crowded with small, unsophisticated operations, Raident remains a trusted and respected resource.

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Contact Information
Raident Technology, Inc.
Natalia Kleschevnikova
(510) 656-3622 x 109
natalia@raident.com
www.raident.com
www.raident.blogspot.com

Metal Market Continues to Weaken

E-scrap processors can expect continued weakness in demand and pricing for metals and metal-containing scrap recovered from obsolete electronics.

Copper is a perfect example. Buyers of copper cathode saw prices fall from a high of nearly $4 per pound last spring to about $1.50 per pound by the end of 2008. Prices in December 2008, alone, dropped 20 percent to the lowest level in more than four years. Market players cite weak global demand and high inventories as the causes of the price swoon.
The picture is expected to remain ugly for the coming months. For instance, prices of futures contracts on the London Metal Exchange show no improvement over today's price.

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Source: E-Scrap News, Jan. 9, 2009

EU's Proposed WEEE Revisions Signal eWaste Crackdown

Potential toughening of EU eWaste could impose minimum recycling targets on IT manufacturers and force them to crank up take back schemes.

The European Commission today issued proposed revisions to the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, which would significantly toughen the much criticized legislation by imposing recycling targets on IT and electrical equipment manufacturers and making them financially responsible for household collection of eWaste.

The regulations came into force in the UK in January 2007 after the EU directive was passed in 2003 with the intention of imposing the polluter pays principle on manufacturers by making them financially responsible for the recycling and safe disposal of IT and electrical equipment.

However, the legislation has been widely criticized by green groups as being largely unworkable, with manufacturers accused of failing to adequately publicize eWaste take back schemes, waste management criticized for illegally exporting old computers to scrap yards in the developing world and regulators slammed for failing to enforce the legislation.

The European Commission has now also expressed concern that the legislation is not proving effective and claims that only around a third of electrical waste is being treated in accordance with the law.

The EU estimates that 54 per cent of eWaste produced across the Union is shipped to sub-standard treatment facilities inside or outside the EU, while the remaining 13 per cent goes to landfill. It also claims that the illegal shipping of eWaste for handling in non-EU countries remains widespread.

The proposed strengthening of the directive would give Member States greater powers of inspection and monitoring, and tighten registration and reporting requirements for producers as well as "encouraging" them to be financially responsible – most likely through a more stringent regime of fines for those firms that creach the new rules.

A recycling target has also been proposed that would require manufacturers to collect annually 65 per cent of the average weight of products placed on the market in the two preceding years.

The proposals have attracted criticism from EICTA, the lobby group representing the information and communications technology and consumer electronics industries in the European Union, which claims that producers would not be able to meet the targets.

"The latest proposal defines a set of unrealistic and unreachable targets because it does not take into account the fact that a market for recyclables already exists," said Mark MacGann, Director General of EICTA. "The Commission has seriously underestimated the volume of electrical and electronic waste collected and recycled by non-producer organizations."

According to research published recently by a Dutch group of eWaste recycling firms, current waste collection targets are being exceeded in most EU countries. It claims that while 80 per cent of the electrical and electronic waste has been effectively collected and recycled, the majority of the collected waste has been recycled outside of the official producer-funded WEEE systems.

"There are large flows of electronic waste outside of the producer-funded WEEE system because of simple economic laws of supply and demand," said MacGann. "There is value in recyclable material. When recycled materials prices are competitive, it will be virtually impossible for producers to get hold of enough waste to meet the proposed collection targets."

However, the EU maintains that it is this waste outside the regulated WEEE system that is most likely to end up in landfill sites or being handled in scrap yards in Asia and Africa where poor safety and environmental standards frequently result in damage to workers health and local water supplies.

The proposals were welcomed by green groups such as IT re-use charity Computer Aid International, which has been campaigning for a crackdown on exports of broken IT and electrical equipment to developing economies.

However, Louise Richards, chief executive at Computer Aid International, said that the proposed changes did not go far enough, arguing that more should be done to promote IT re-use over and above recycling.

"The renewed emphasis on recycling targets is a reassuring move, however we question why there is still no specific target in place for re-use alone," she said. "It is our hope that in the future the directive will ensure that 100% of functioning whole appliances are re-used, particularly in the case of PCs and laptops. It's essential that we maximize the energy already expended during the production process, which takes up 75 per cent of a PC’s lifecycle energy before the equipment is even turned on for the first time."

She also argued that the success of any attempt to crack down on illegal waste export would rest on individual member states willingness to properly police the legislation.

"Whilst the proposed changes to the WEEE directive seek to better control equipment leaving the EU, individual governments could still fail to equip their Environment Agencies and equivalents with the appropriate resources to do so effectively," she warned, adding that the charity was currently running a petition on the No 10 website calling for an increase in resources to support the Environment Agency's attempts to police the legislation.

The proposed revisions to the WEEE directive are now open for consultation ahead of an eventual vote on the changes in the European Parliament.

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Source: BusinessGreen, Dec. 4, 2008 (http://www.vnunet.com/business-green/news/2231983proposed-weee-revisions-squeeze).

Waste Board Raises Electronic Waste Recycling Fee Starting January 1, 2009

Effective January 1, 2009, the Electronic Waste Recycling (Ewaste) Fee will increase for all covered electronic devices (CEDs).

The new fees are as follows:
SCREEN SIZE - MEASURED DIAGONALLY FEE
-More than 4 inches, less than 15 inches $ 8.00.
-15 inches or more, less than 35 inches $ 16.00.
-35 inches or more $ 25.00.

The California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) approved an increase in the Ewaste fees at their June 17, 2008 board meeting. The Board of Equalization (BOE) is responsible for collection of the Ewaste fees.

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Source: State Board of Equalization

NSWMA Like Obama´s Choices for EPA

Dec. 12 -- A trade group representing the solid waste management industry is pleased with President-elect Barack Obama´s choices of Lisa Jackson to lead the federal Environmental Protection Agency and Steven Chu as energy secretary.

"Like most of Mr. Obama´s other nominees, the people chosen to head these important agencies have extensive knowledge and experience of the challenges this country faces, and we look forward to working closely with them," said Bruce Parker, president and CEO of the National Solid Wastes Management Association.

"We have great confidence in the selection of Lisa Jackson to EPA administrator, and we look forward to working with her to achieve our nation´s environmental goals," Parker said.

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Source: WasteNews.com Dec. 12, 2008