WILLIAMS SEEKS TO REDUCE ELECTRONIC WASTE

HARRISBURG, OCT. 3 – As Democratic Chair of the Senate Communications and Technology Committee, state Sen. Connie Williams has witnessed first hand and understands how advances in technology are helping people to live longer and to enjoy better access to information.

This knowledge has led Williams to question what happens to the old technology when it is replaced. She is not alone in questioning. On Thursday at 9 a.m. the Joint Legislative Air and Water Pollution Control and Conservation Committee will hold a public hearing on electronic waste recycling in Harrisburg.

"Consumers have not had many options when it came to discarding old televisions and computers," Williams said. "While there are some Household Hazardous Waste Recycling events where electronics are accepted, they are not as frequent and certainly not as easy as curb-side recycling. This has meant that quite a few of these electronics have ended up in landfills, posing the potential of releasing harmful toxins, such as lead, into our environment.

"As we prepare for the next wave of technological advances – from high definition television, to all digital broadcast and faster computers – it is important that we address this public health hazard. There is a simple and proven solution; a recovery fee similar to what we charge to dispose of old tires."

Williams introduced legislation (S.B. 1115) that would create a statewide electronic waste recycling program. The program would be funded through the enactment of an advanced recovery fee on the purchase of new televisions and computers. The fee would likely range from $6 to $10 depending upon the size of the screen. Additionally, the legislation would ban the disposal of cathode ray tubes in landfills and incinerators.

"By some estimates, electronic products constitute the fastest growing category of municipal waste," Williams said. "Take a look at your television or your computer and you will find plastic, which doesn't naturally decompose, and you will find cathode ray tubes. Neither of these materials is healthy or safe for the environment."

According to the National Safety Council, more than 500 million computers will be discarded in 2007, resulting in the need to dispose of 603 billion pounds of plastic and 106 billion pounds of lead. Cathode ray tubes, which are found in computers and television monitors, each contain between five and eight pounds of lead.

"Technological advances are an absolute necessity when it comes to furthering our system of health care, education and Pennsylvania's position in the global economy," Williams said. "However, it is just as important as it was many years ago when we saw the problem of placing old tires in landfills, to pro-actively address how to responsibly and safely dispose of old computers and televisions.

"When looking at price tags that can run into the thousands of dollars for a new big screen, digital or high definition television, or for the latest computer lap top or PC, I would hope that consumers would not be opposed to paying an additional $6 to $10, especially when they understand that the extra few dollars will keep lead out of our environment and protect open space, by keeping billions of pounds of plastic out of our landfills."