Samsung named e-Stewards Strategic Initiatives Champion

Samsung Electronics America, Inc., has been recognized with an e-Stewards Strategic Initiatives Champion Award for its recent contributions toward the advancement of the e-Stewards mission, which defines and promotes ethical and responsible electronics reuse and recycling best practices worldwide. With Samsung's financial support, e-Stewards has been able to develop a shorter version of the e-Stewards Standard specifically for the segment of the recycling industry involved in repair and refurbishment and to begin initiatives within our Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG) program.

Read the full press release here.

New e-Stewards Enterprise: Gloyd Recycling Solutions

e-Stewards welcomes Gloyd Recycling Solutions (GRS), a new ITAD disposition consultancy, to the ranks of its Enterprise Program. With over twenty years of experience in environmental services, waste management, and recycling in both the public and private sectors, GRS has the knowledge, established history, and partnerships to support every aspect of the recycling industry. Their areas of expertise range from facility design and operation, sales and marketing strategy and brand development, to executive leadership planning and financial stratagem. In January 2024, GRS brought to market the first shredding and commodity recovery system designed to manage batteries embedded in devices at the warehouse level.

“Having spent over a decade working with and for e-Stewards Certified companies, we realized that a strong certification program makes everyone in the industry better,” said Jeff Gloyd, Founder of Gloyd Recycling Solutions. “GRS is proud to be the newest e-Stewards Enterprise, and we look forward to continuing to promote the e-Stewards Standard with all our clients.”

The e-Stewards Enterprise Program designates companies committed to preferring the use of Certified e-Stewards Processors -- the world’s most globally responsible electronics recycling companies -- for the electronic waste they generate and control.

Public Comment Open for Proposed Sanctioned Interpretations

e-Stewards recently announced the publication and opening a 30 business-day public comment period for the most recent Sanctioned Interpretations drafted by the e-Stewards Standard Committee. Sanctioned Interpretations are small changes to the Standard that are agreed between official versions of the Standard. They become binding once adopted by e-Stewards after taking into consideration the comments provided during the public review period.

All are welcome to review the draft Sanctioned Interpretations and provide their comments or feedback. Please find the Sanctioned Interpretation draft here and provide all comments on the webform here.

The closure of the public comment period will be May 1, 2024. Please provide any and all comments by this date to ensure timely review and integration. If you have any questions, please contact Daniel Puckett (daniel@e-stewards.org).

e-Stewards wishes to introduce our newest Leadership Council members. Chris Kaasmann is Vice President of compliance at Greenchip E-Waste & ITAD Solutions, an east coast electronics recycler with a nationwide presence. Greenchip is a triple-certified (e-Stewards, R2v3 & NAID) organization that focuses on its partners, value, and risk mitigation, with transparent end to end services. Kaasmann came to Greenchip in January 2022 after over a decade of experience in the recycling industry. Most recently, he spent four years at Samsung, where he managed e-waste environmental compliance and take-back operations. Prior to this, Chris managed recycling programs for RLGA and Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.

e-Stewards welcomes new Administrative Assistant

e-Stewards would like to introduce you to our newest team member, Halle Riggs, who will be our Administrative Assistant. In this role for e-Stewards, she will be helping with day-to-day operations, including license agreement renewals, customer inquiries, and general support for our e-Stewards team. Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Halle has always loved and appreciated the luscious green forest, breathtaking views, and striking mountain surroundings that Seattle has to offer. After traveling abroad, it became obvious to her how crucial it is to take care of our planet, as she became more passionate about ways to reduce our environmental footprint and protect our earth for future generations. She likes to quote Robert Swan: “The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.” Outside of work, you can find her testing out new cuisine in the kitchen, exploring Seattle, spending quality time outdoors with her loved ones or cuddled up with her fat black cat Bubba.

50% Discount for new e-Stewards

e-Stewards is continuing to offer a 50% discount for all new companies on their first-year license and marketing fees. This offer is available to processors that have never been e-Stewards Certified. 

If you are interested in e-Stewards certification, please reach out to us at info@e-stewards.org or schedule an introductory call through our website. We look forward to hearing from you! 

Global e-waste surges to record levels

Released Wednesday, the Global E-waste Monitor 2024, published by the United Nations, shows staggering amounts of e-waste created worldwide. In 2022, 62 billion kg of e-waste were generated globally (compared to 34 billion kg in 2010), with only 22.3% documented as formally collected and recycled in an environmentally sound manner. While e-waste generated has grown by an average rate of 2.3 billion kg per year between 2010 and 2022, global recycling capacity has only grown 0.5 billion kg annually on average, meaning that e-waste generation is outpacing recycling capacity by nearly a factor of five. The report also found that 3.3 billion kg of e-waste were shipped from higher-income to middle- and low-income countries through uncontrolled and undocumented transboundary movements, accounting for 65% of the total of e-waste shipped between countries in 2022.

Busy start to the year for right-to-repair in the US

Over a dozen right-to-repair bills covering consumer electronics are currently proposed in state legislatures across the US, according to E-Scrap News.

In Oregon, the Right to Repair Act has passed both the state House and Senate with bipartisan support and is currently awaiting the Governor’s signature. The bill would be the first to address the practice of “parts pairing,” which limits parts to be used by specific devices, both increasing the cost of repairs and not allowing the harvesting of functional parts from other devices for repair. The targeting of this practice in the bill drew Apple’s attention, which testified against it, despite its support for California’s right-to-repair law that passed last year.

A similar bill has passed the Colorado House of Representatives and also includes a ban on parts pairing. This bill would add onto the state’s current right-to-repair law that applies to wheelchairs and farm equipment.

Notably, states that passed right-to-repair laws in recent years are now seeking to amend them to close loopholes and catch up to California’s law. In New York, lawmakers hope to extend the date of manufacture for covered products back two years to July 2021, change what qualifies as an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), and repeal other limitations of the law. A proposed law in Minnesota seeks to reduce exemptions in the original law passed last year and introduces language defining parts pairing.

e-Stewards Standard Tip

Industrial Hygiene Requirements: Industrial Hygiene (IH) requirements are noted in several sections of the e-Stewards Standard and are applicable to all processors whose risk assessment determines a need for an IH program, or otherwise operates Potentially Hazardous Processing Technologies (PHPTs) in the processing of electronics.

Sections of importance with relevance to IH monitoring include:

• 6.4.1 Planning for Site Closure
• 7.4.2 Internal Communication
• 8.3 Industrial Hygiene Program
• 9.3 Management Review
• A.8.3.1 PHPT Hazard Testing Requirements

It should be noted that while the e-Stewards Standard does require that a processor requiring an Industrial Hygiene Program must retain a Certified Industrial Hygienist or Equivalent (CIH/E) and a Designated Health Provider to oversee specific areas of the IH Monitoring Program, there are some cases where monitoring does not need be directly completed by the CIH/E. As stated in section 8.3.1, all IH testing must be completed under direct supervision of a CIH/E. This allows for some flexibility in performance of IH testing, while ensuring testing is completed in accordance with stringent industrial hygiene monitoring practices.

All monitoring results must be evaluated by a CIH/E or physician knowledgeable in occupational medicine and/or medical toxicology. A Designated Health Provider must review the results of risk evaluations and ongoing IH Monitoring as part of the risk assessments required under section 6.1.1.

Definitions for CIH/E, Industrial Hygiene, and Designated Health Provider can be found in the e-Stewards Standard v4.1, accessible here.

For any further questions on the e-Stewards Standard, please contact Selena Turnock, Certification Director, at selena@e-Stewards.org.

Featured Opinion

Following recent revelations of widespread export of e-plastics throughout the US e-scrap industry and noncompliance with the new Basel plastic waste amendments, Jim Puckett of e-Stewards and Corey Dehmey of SERI have penned a joint op-ed in E-Scrap News. Learn more about this important topic and how the e-Stewards and R2 certifications are working together to address this industry-wide issue.

Featured Videos

Illegal e-waste disposal plant with laundry list of offences raided in Seremban – by The Star

Recycling e-waste - Good for business and the environment – by DW Documentary

About e-Stewards:

The e-Stewards® Initiative is a market-based solution to help individuals and organizations identify and promote electronics recyclers who ensure that used electronics are managed with the highest environmental and social responsibility standards. e-Stewards Certified Recyclers and Refurbishers are audited and certified to ensure the highest levels of responsibility. e-Stewards Enterprises are major corporations, municipalities, nonprofits, or institutions that agree to make their best efforts to use e-Stewards Certified Recyclers. e-Stewards is a program established by the environmental advocacy organization Basel Action Network. See e-Stewards Video.

Do you have news, photos, or videos about your company? We welcome submissions and invite you to share ideas with info@e-stewards.org. Thank you for reading!