Convention calls for urgent action to boost responsible electronics recycling

By  Paul Ploumis 23 Sep 2015  Last updated at  08:40:10 GMT

PORTLAND (Scrap Monster): A premier gathering of technology experts has highlighted the urgency of responsible recycling procedures to be implemented. Speaking at the Emerging Green 2015 Conference, John Shegerian, Chairman and CEO of Electronic Recyclers International (ERI) and Aaron Blum, Co-Founder and Chief Compliance Officer of ERI noted that the country’s surplus e-waste leads to significant environmental pollution.

According to Shegarian, the responsible electronics recycling programs continues to face many challenges. However, the implementation of the program leads to immense environmental benefits. He added that responsible recycling plays a major role in protection of critical digital data. He was speaking as part of the plenary program titled “Electronics in a Circular Economy”, moderated by Mike Biddle. Meantime, Aaron participated in an expert panel discussion on the impacts of hazardous substances.

Both industry leaders emphasized on strict implementation of best sustainability practices throughout the entire technology industry. Further, they noted that responsible recycling of electronic waste contributes to circular economy.

The ‘Emerging Green 2015’ is being held from September 22-24, 2015 at Portland, Oregon, USA. The conference aims to explore the key advances, research, opportunities and challenges of sustainable electronics. The conference is being organized by the Green Electronics Council, a non-profit organization founded to inspire and catalyze environmental leadership throughout the lifecycle of electronic technologies.

Electronic Recyclers International (ERI), the world’s largest privately held recycler of electronic waste, is e-Stewards and R2 certified to de-manufacture and recycle every type of electronic waste in an environmentally friendly manner. ERI processes more than 275 million pounds of electronic waste annually at eight locations serving every zip code in the United States.