By Jared Paben, E-Scrap News
April 6, 2016
R2 and e-Stewards representatives are challenging the legality of a bill in
Illinois that prohibits accrediting organizations from penalizing e-scrap
companies if they send CRT glass to storage cells at a landfill.
The CRT storage approach is allowed under
current Illinois law.
"This legislation is an attempt to rewrite the standard via
legislation, which is clearly inappropriate and, in my opinion,
unconstitutional, based on the First Amendment right of free speech," said
Willie Cade, founder of Chicago-based PC Rebuilders & Recyclers. His firm is
certified to the R2 standard.
R2 and e-Stewards serve as environmental and safety
certifications for e-scrap companies.
Cade started an online petition to bring attention to the issue.
The bill in question also says the state won't require
accreditation for companies using the storage-cell option. Kuusakoski U.S. began placing
leaded CRT glass in storage cells in 2015 at a landfill in Peoria, Ill.
R2 prohibits the storage-cell approach, and e-Stewards permits
it only as a "conditionally allowable option."
'A disastrous precedent'
Jim Puckett, executive director of Seattle-based Basel Action Network (BAN),
which started the e-Stewards certification, released a statement challenging the legality of the bill.
"Our advisors tell us that a state such as Illinois cannot tell
a voluntary business association created in the state of Washington what their
membership or certification criteria can be and cannot prevent us from
sanctioning or suspending members that are not willing to voluntarily meet the
criteria," Puckett said. "As written this rule would appear to violate our basic
rights of speech and association and moreover would attempt to do so outside of
its own jurisdiction."
Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI), which
administers the R2 standard, is sending an email to all R2-certified e-scrap
recycling companies in Illinois asking them to sign the online petition.
"Putting aside your beliefs – pro or con – about retrievable
storage of CRT glass, the more important issue for the R2 certification program
is that state legislators are attempting to dictate what can and can’t be
included in the voluntary, consensus-based standard," the email states. "This
bill sets a disastrous precedent for allowing legislators in all 50 states, as
well as lawmakers in other countries with R2 certified companies, to create
their own versions of the R2 standard."
"To put it bluntly, if passed, this bill would be the beginning
of the end of the R2 standard," the email states.
Questioning state's approach
Both Puckett, and John Lingelbach, executive director of SERI, told E-Scrap
News that if Illinois wants CRT glass in storage cells, it should pass a law
requiring it. The certifications require e-scrap companies to comply with state
laws.
"If Illinois passed a law to mandate that all recyclers
operating in Illinois must use landfill storage cells, then in that case
e-Stewards operating in Illinois would be forced to oblige, as adherents to our
standard, must always obey applicable law," Puckett said.
"If the people of Illinois believe CRT glass belongs in
retrievable storage cells, they should pass a law saying so," Lingelbach noted.
"The R2 standard then would be forced to require Illinois recyclers to use this
disposal option, even if the majority of the R2 community disagrees with it as
policy because retrievable storage is not recycling.”
Any law mandating the storage approach could enter questionable
legal territory regarding limiting competition in the market.
The current legislation is HB 6321 in the Illinois House of Representatives and SB 2770 in the Senate. A committee on April 4 voted to advance
the House bill.
In the House, the bill is sponsored by Democratic Rep. Jehan
Gordon-Booth, who is assistant majority leader. In the Senate, it is sponsored
by Democratic Sen. David Koehler, who chairs the Environment and Conservation
Committee – that Senate committee is currently considering the legislation.
Both legislators are from Peoria, where the storage cell
placement is occurring.
Calls from E-Scrap News to Gordon-Booth and Koehler's office
seeking comment were not returned.
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