The California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is evaluating the quantity of dangerous metals in OLED products, such as TVs, laptops, monitors, and tablets, as well as LCD tablets and LCD-based smart gadgets.

Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003

Officials will add hazardous metals to the authorized recycling program if concentrations of hazardous metals exceed state regulatory standards. Environmental scientists, and now DTSC, have become conscious of the way technology and its rapid advancement have changed since California’s electronics recycling program came about. 

When customers buy certain types of new gadgets, California’s electronics recycling program, which was approved in 2003 and is the country’s oldest, charges them fees of $4, $5, or $6, depending on the screen size.

The California Agency of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) compensates e-scrap businesses who collect and properly discard covered gadgets, and the state’s tax and fee department collects the money. The combined collection and recycling payout rate for CRTs was 66 cents per pound in July, and 87 cents per pound for non-CRT devices.

Devices On The List

According to the DTSC, the initiative covers devices having video screens of four inches or more when measured diagonally, as well as those that have been determined to “exhibit the hazardous waste feature of toxicity when discarded” (cell phones are excluded).

Others:

  • Portable DVD players 
  • CRT TVs and monitors
  • LCD TVs and laptops
  • Plasma TVs

Testing New Devices

CalRecycle collaborated with industry partners to establish a first list of device types to test for prospective inclusion. DTSC narrowed the selection down by analyzing the market availability of each device type. They prioritized bigger items to give additional possibilities for recyclers and handlers to obtain the biggest reimbursements possible for managing these devices. They also acquired market-leading brands in each category for testing, including Apple, LG, Samsung, and LG.

OLED TV

  • 55-inch LG C9PUA Series
  • Sony 55-inch A9G Master Series

OLED laptops

  • Dell XPS 15 7590
  • HP Spectre x360
  • ASUS Zenbook Pro Duo

OLED displays

  • Dell 55-inch Alienware OLED AW5520QF
  • ASUS 21.6-inch Proart PQ22UC

OLED tablets

  • Samsung Galaxy Tab S6
  • Samsung Tab S5e

Tablets are currently grouped in with “laptops” in the present program, which means customers pay a charge when they buy them and processors are compensated for recycling them. In order to confirm that they are eligible for the program and to classify them as a separate category, the following were tested:

  • Apple iPad 8th generation
  • Apple iPad Mini
  • Amazon7-inch Fire Tablet 7
  • Samsung 8-inch Galaxy Tab 

The following will also be tested, in order to possibly include them in their own new category: 

  • Google 7-inch Nest Hub
  • Amazon 8-inch Echo Show 8
  • Facebook 10-inch Portal

Looking for Contaminants

The DTSC lab will evaluate the devices to assess metal concentrations and compare them to California Code of Regulations limits. Lead, mercury, nickel, copper, and antimony are among the metals that are commonly examined.

If metal concentrations surpass the limitations for a particular item, state authorities aim to add the whole category of devices to the program through emergency rulemaking, which allows the state to enact the changes more quickly than a regular rulemaking procedure. Retailers would be forced to begin charging fees on the gadgets immediately, and e-scrap businesses would be compensated to recycle them, according to Nguyen.

The findings of the tests should be available in late spring 2021, according to the DTSC. Early in the summer of 2021, emergency restrictions would take effect.

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TechWaste Recycling directly services all of Southern California and provides pickup services to its facilities from nationwide locations. Visit TechWaste Recycling’s website at www.techwasterecycling.com to schedule a pickup that works for your convenience and schedule.