Choosing an IT recycling vendor for your business is not something that should be done without careful consideration. If your objective is to avoid having your company’s IT assets end up in landfills, stockpiled in forgotten warehouses, or shipped overseas to countries with lax regulations, you will need to choose an IT recycling vendor that not only claims it will do the right thing with your assets, but can actually back up that claim with a documented and certified recycling process. If the only documentation you get from your IT equipment recycling provider is a “certificate of recycling,” your company could be exposed to a huge amount of risk, as regulatory bodies and governments turn their attention toward curbing the environmental impact of improperly disposed electronics.
Why Certification Matters in IT Recycling
Any IT recycling vendor can tell you it does the right thing. All it takes to generate a certificate of recycling is a printer and some desktop publishing software; a certificate of recycling is not a legal document. But how can you really know what happens to your company’s IT assets after your vendor collects them? Most organizations can’t spare the resources to fully vet their vendors’ capabilities and procedures. In IT asset disposition, the task is even more difficult because many IT recycling vendors partner with other companies downstream. To verify your vendor’s environmental compliance, you would also have to verify the compliance of all of its vendors.
Recognizing this difficulty, environmental advocates and leaders in the IT recycling industry have twice collaborated to create certifications for compliant and safe electronics recycling: e-Stewards and R2/RIOS. Instead of attempting to track their IT assets through a complex chain of custody from pick-up to final disposition, businesses can now look for either of these certifications to ensure that their assets are being handled according to all state and federal environmental regulations. This is important because, legally, even when its IT equipment has been handed over to a vendor, the original owner of that equipment could be held liable if the equipment has been found to have been disposed of in a non-compliant manner.
Two Certifications, One Objective: Environmental Compliance
While e-Stewards and R2/RIOS were created under different circumstances, they have several key commonalities. Among them, electronics recycling vendors that hold either of these certifications must audit their downstream partners and provide documented proof that all of the material is being processed in compliance with all laws and standards. These two certifications also put in place strict standards for workplace health and safety, as well as data security.
Some businesses build into their environmental or risk management policies a requirement that their IT recycling vendors have e-Stewards or R2/RIOS certification. More and more businesses are requiring both, which only a few IT recycling vendors have.
Learn More About the e-Stewards and R2/RIOS Certifications
We have written in detail about the e-Stewards and R2/RIOS standards. Our free, “2013 Guide to Environmental Compliance in IT Asset Disposition,” dives deep into the environmental issues surrounding IT asset disposition, while our “Guide to Minimizing the Risk of IT Asset Disposition” looks at the benefits of partnering with certified vendors through a risk management lens. Download the guide for free by clicking on the image below.
