Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Nannies Abounding

Want to throw away that dead monitor, ancient computer or old analog TV? In Indiana, you'd better move quickly: starting 1 January 2011, you will be required to recycle them. The trash haulers will refuse them. Yes, even if you're frail and 85, you'll have to find some way to get that 250-lb rear-projection Philco that hasn't worked since 1992 to the "e-cycler." And pay them to take it, in all likelihood.

Me, I'm betting there's going to be a lot more casual dumping of destroyed DVD players, VHS tape decks and anonymous beige boxes with Intel Inside®. Coming soon to a vacant lot or a roadside near you! --And, according to the report, just chock full of toxic lead (alloyed with tin in the solder, same as it ever was) and mercury (flatscreen backlights, exactly like the gummint-mandated CFL bulbs in your lights. Will we be made to e-cycle those, too?). See "Consequences, Unintended."

8 comments:

Turk Turon said...

I detect a Hoosier-ific business opportunity!

Tango Juliet said...

It's the end of the world as usual. All this lead free solder makes for less reliable electronics.

George said...

In Phoenix, they've a special recycling unit that fishes out electronic gizmos (they would rather you delivered them, or requested special p/u)and refurbs them or parts for the city to distribute as it sees fit. Of course, I always surgically remove hard drives, first, for other disposal.
wv: indendis - don't know what the city's indendis

Anonymous said...

Considering the concentration of precious metals in your average electronic device, and the fact that the Chinese control the vast majority of the supply, don't be surprised if this becomes a serious issue soon.

Jim

Joel said...

Ah, recycling laws. Before moving out of California I needed to dispose of a mattress - actually a perfectly good, nearly-new mattress. The resulting odyssey into toxic-waste-management land was at least as weird and disorienting as any rabbit hole. And of course the saga ended at an unwatched dumpster in the middle of the night.

Dumbasses.

Fuzzy Curmudgeon said...

In all fairness, they do seem to be making an effort to provide locations for disposal of such things.

Still, glad I busted up and disposed of the big 54" RCA projection TV about a month ago, 'cause they apparently wouldn't have taken it.

Anonymous said...

I work part-time at an Illinois e-waste
recycling unit. Same deadline, and
you wouldn't believe the dusty, muddy,
Asian-beetle-laced sets that are coming
of the woodwork. Anon, Don

medicman said...

For your amusement, here is the 14 point guideline for dealing with a broken CFL from the state of Maine:

http://maine.gov/dep/rwm/homeowner/cflbreakcleanup.htm

Yeah, I'll be hoarding incandescents...