Synergy Recycling

I called the City of GSO and spoke to the person in charge of electronic waste recycling. I asked him who the collected waste was sent to for processing. The City employee said, “Synergy.” I thanked him.

From Synergy Recycling in Mayodan:

Synergy Recycling LLC. Is a privately held firm located in the Piedmont Triad area of North Carolina. Our services include environmentally responsible recycling of obsolete and end of life electronic equipment, asset recovery, and certified data destruction of proprietary or otherwise sensitive media, logistics and transportation services for the materials we handle.

Here’s what I’m looking for:

End-of-life equipment recycling

Utilizing various methods, Synergy provides recycling services for end-of-life, obsolete electronic equipment to include personal computers, telecommunications equipment, networking equipment, printers and other peripherals, copiers, consumer electronics, circuit boards, components, monitors and televisions and much more.

I have a simple question: Does this stuff end up in China?

From Julie Schmit at USA Today:

SEATTLE — Hong Kong intercepted and returned 41 ship containers to U.S. ports this year because they carried tons of illegal electronics waste from the U.S., according to the Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department.

By turning the containers away, Hong Kong thwarted attempts by U.S. companies to dump 1.4 million pounds of broken TVs or computer monitors overseas and an estimated 82,000 pounds of lead, a known toxin, in the devices…

In 2001, Puckett and the one other BAN employee could find no U.S. recyclers who weren’t exporting e-waste to developing countries. No U.S. law prevented the export of e-waste to developing countries.

Since then, BAN — working on a shoestring budget from an office in Seattle with mismatched furniture and concrete floors — has had 40 recyclers take its E-Steward pledge not to export to poorer countries. In the wake of August’s report from the GAO, Congress’ investigative arm, 82 other recyclers have joined BAN’s waiting list to earn its E-Steward designation.

Synergy is displaying no such emblem. Are we to then assume that they are in fact shipping toxic waste to Hong Kong?

From the Basel Action Network:

BAN is the world’s only organization focused on confronting the global environmental injustice and economic inefficiency of toxic trade (toxic wastes, products and technologies) and its devastating impacts. Working at the nexus of human rights and environment, we confront the issues of environmental justice at a macro level, preventing disproportionate and unsustainable dumping of the world’s toxic waste and pollution on our global village’s poorest residents. At the same time we actively promote the sustainable and just solutions to our consumption and waste crises — banning waste trade, while promoting green, toxic free and democratic design of consumer products.

Back to USA Today:

In 2010, it’ll launch a voluntary certification program for the USA’s 300 to 500 e-waste recyclers. The EPA estimates the industry recycles 60 million electronics products a year, most of which are exported….

“We know all the tricks that people use to hide exports,” says Houghton of Redemtech, one of the E-Stewards. He says companies that hire recyclers and “want to do the right thing” lack auditing expertise to track e-waste. He estimates that 80% of U.S. e-waste collected for recycling is exported and that most recyclers “defraud their clients when it comes to exporting.”…

The GAO, after a 10-month investigation, lambasted the EPA for failing to enforce the USA’s only regulation regarding e-waste exports. That rule says that broken cathode-ray tubes (CRTs) — the lead-containing picture tubes in older TVs and computer monitors — cannot be exported unless the U.S. recycler notifies the EPA and gets permission from the importing country.

Posing as buyers of broken CRTs in Asia, the GAO investigators e-mailed 343 U.S. recyclers looking for old CRTs. Of the 64 companies that responded, 43 agreed to export the CRTs in apparent violation of the CRT rule, the GAO said.

I want a fucking MIKE force on site with intel on those containers. Let’s move, people!

BAN’s tactic? It stations volunteers near recyclers’ loading docks and photographs container numbers as the containers get filled. Then, BAN tracks the containers’ movement via public websites and alerts officials in the receiving country that a suspect container is on the way.

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Here’s Redemtech, a compliant recycler,with a BAN video.

Synergy is a member of the SERDC. My guess is the containers go to Pensacola.

From BusinessWeek:

Dec. 30–HIGH POINT — Next month, large computer makers must start a consumer recycling plan, or they won’t be able to do business in North Carolina.

Until the General Assembly passed SB-1553 in August, North Carolina had no way to handle this type of e-waste. Most city and county landfills won’t accept e-waste.

From the Sierra Club:

The bill creates a “producer responsibility” program that requires computer manufacturers to develop and implement a plan for recycling equipment discarded by consumers; essentially, these kinds of programs force manufacturers to take full responsibility for the life-cycle of their products. That the bill requires measurable results ensures consumers are getting a consistent service and the program is being enforced – it’s one of the new law’s strongest features.

The bill requires computer manufacturers to report the volume of material recycled and encourages multiple options for disposal to encourage participation by consumers. Producers will pay for transportation from collection sites (which may be operated by the government, retailers or non-profits) and well as recycling costs. Unlike legislation introduced last year, the bill does not include other electronic products like televisions, or an advanced recovery fee paid upon purchase of equipment.

The following companies accept “Electronic Equipment and Scrap” from N.C.

The trail has gone cold, but I know at the bottom of this is Phil Gramm.