Edwin, Vazquez-Asencio, Sustainable Materials Management Specialist, Puerto Rico

With the assistance of a few community volunteers from Barrio Collores, Pontifical Catholic University students, and municipal representatives, RCAP Solutions conducted an electronic (e-waste) and Household Hazardous Waste (HHW) collection event in Juana Diaz.

Mr. Vazquez-Asencio (right) at the electronics collection event with Mayor Ramón A. “Ramoncito” Hernández Torres

As part of the solid waste program, RCAP has been educating communities about the negative impacts of household hazardous waste on the environment and public health, as well as looking at ways to promote participation in recycling activities. While many materials can be recycled and taken out of the waste stream, residents don’t know which items or how and where to recycle them.

After evaluating the data from past RCAP cleanup events as well as illegal dumping sites, RCAP discovered the need for education related to e-waste in particular. Interaction with community members and other stakeholders has demonstrated that there is a lack of knowledge on this topic, leading to the creation of illegal dumping sites, and the mixing of these products in the normal waste stream and landfill system.

In an effort to educate residents and make improvements in this area, RCAP organized a small e-waste collection event in December, with the collaboration of the Juana Diaz municipality.

As a result, RCAP collected 2,880 lbs. of electronics which were processed and recycled. Another 10,000 lbs. of non-recyclable HHW were collected and properly disposed of according to the guidance in the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations.

Even though the event only lasted four hours, the amount of e-waste that was diverted from being illegally dumped was considerable.

Non-conforming items are difficult to identify and depend on factors associated with the local recycler, the current market, or the item’s condition. Items like old TV’s are depreciated in the market, and the options for selling their components are only viable in countries with growing economies like India, Indonesia or Malaysia, and it is very expensive to export these large items. Other items like printers containing ink cartridges cannot be accepted because they must be separated and there may not be the means to dispose of them properly as the market for ink cartridges is also limited.

The EPA helped dispose of many of the HHW items that could not be recycled, but ink could not be received for disposal, so as a result, printers could not be accepted.

The materials recovered were treated according to regulations and will not end up in the local municipal landfill, a landfill that is not suitable for these kinds of toxic materials.

Josefa Torres-Olivo, District Director for PR and USVI removes ink cartridges from old printers before recycling.

The success of this event and related activities can be measured in many different ways: it was extremely educational for local residents, students and municipal staff; it served as a kickoff for the recycling industry in the area; it acted as a means to divert materials from the main waste stream and reduce their impact in our limited landfills; and it served as a way to protect the environment and public lands from illegal dumping and ultimately, protect public health.

“This activity is something that I was looking forward to for a long time; I had a huge old TV sitting in my house because I didn’t know what I was going to do with it,” commented Karina Zayas, Host of WPAB Radio 550 AM in Ponce. “I used to remove the batteries from a radio, flash light or remote control and throw them in the trash, as well as light bulbs. After our last radio interview, I put the batteries and bulbs in a Ziploc bag, and take them to the recycling center; now I know not to mix these items with the regular garbage.”