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Closing the Loop: an Update on the Life Cycle of Electronics

Multnomah Athletic Club
Portland, OR

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Closing the Loop: an Update on the Life Cycle of Electronics

Oregon Natural Step Network Breakfast
Closing the Loop: an Update on the Life Cycle of Electronics
Cradle to Cradle or Cradle to Grave?
featuring
Sego Jackson, Chair, Policy Committee, Northwest Product Stewardship Council and Wayne Rifer, EPEAT Operations Manager, Green Electronics Council

Three years ago the network held a breakfast on the issue of electronic waste. At the time electronic recycling legislation was proposed in Oregon. At the national level, the National Electronic Product Stewardship Initiative (NEPSI) was stalled as electronics industry leaders disagreed over whether industry or individual producers should be held responsible for recycling electronic waste. The legislation failed to pass in 2005, and NEPSI was abandoned. Three years later, have we made progress?

In the past 12 months weâve seen the launch of EPEAT (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool), a procurement tool to help institutional purchasers compare and select desktop computers, notebooks and monitors based on their environmental attributes. The intent of EPEAT is to provide an incentive to electronic manufacturers to improve the environmental design of their products through a clear and consistent set of performance criteria. Purchasers, as well as manufacturers, have widely adopted the EPEAT set of performance criteria for the design of products, and substantial environmental benefits have been measured.

Are these changes bringing us closer to a cradle to cradle model? How can your organization utilize the EPEAT tool? Come hear two leading experts on electronic waste discuss these recent changes. Wayne Rifer, was the Project Manger of EPEAT development and is currently the EPEAT Operations Manager. Sego Jackson, is Chair of the Policy Committee of the Northwest Product Stewardship Council and Principal Planner for the Snohomish County Solid Waste Management Division.