PC manufacturer policy: take-back and recycling system for used PCs

摘要

Under the Law for Promotion of Effective Resource Utilization, PC manufacturers in Japan have collected and recycled used PCs that were discarded by business entities. Business entities are responsible for paying the recycling fees when PCs are discarded. On the contrary, under the take-back and recycling system for PCs discarded by individual consumers, which is set to being in October 2003, recycling fees for PCs sold after October 2003 will be paid by the consumer when the PC is purchased. The recycling fees for PCs sold before October 2003 will be born by individual consumers at the time they are discarded. PC manufacturers are now planning to develop a take-back system that will offer door-to-door collection of used PCs, pick-ups at designated collection points, and will also consign used PC transporters for simultaneous take-back of PCs from multi-manufacturers. This system is expected to make it more convenient for consumer's to discard unwanted PCs, to reduce the consumer burden of recycling, and to improve the efficiency of the take-back system on the whole.