RE: [greenyes] Mining and e waste

["Eric Lombardi" <eric@no.address>]

Michele,

There are actually a lot of environmentalists fighting to change the
Mining Act of 1872 (I think that's the year) ... but you're right that
the "secondary materials industry" (i.e. the recyclers) haven't
connected with this issue the way we should.  But there are reasons for
that Michele, and if you're sincere in suggesting that we do something
on this issue, then you need to also discuss the issue of how Big
Business in America doesn't like to get "political" UNLESS it impacts
them directly, then they just march an army of lobbyists into
Washington.  The point being that it's a very rare thing for "an
industry" to fight against "an industry".  Do you get my point?  

What this means is that other than the environmental wing of the
secondary materials industry, it's going to be hard to get the Big
Recycling Companies that have lobbyists, like Waste Management or
Weyerhaeuser, for example, to join in on a fight that pits big business
against big business.  And you of all people, who works closely with
some big international firms, should know how adverse big business is to
social activism.  

However, maybe the time is ripe and some Big Recycling Companies exist
out there that are willing to join in the fight against the Mining Act.
Do you happen to know of any?  Certainly it would be a good fight and
well worth fighting.

Eric



Eric Lombardi
Executive Director
Eco-Cycle, Inc
Boulder, CO
303-444-6634
www.ecocycle.org
"Recycling may not save the world, but  the recycling spirit might."

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Michele Raymond [mailto:michele@no.address] 
Sent: Tuesday, April 06, 2004 3:13 PM
To: greenyes@no.address
Subject: [greenyes] Mining and e waste

Greenyesers:

Robin Ingenthron (Good Pint Recycling) always points out that half of
our 
haz waste comes from MINING.

I saw a piece on 60 Minutes about a horrible coal slurry that wrecked
part 
of W VA and KY -- and Bush tried to sweep it a bit.

Robin also notes that recycling e-waste is 300 times more beneficial for

environment than mining.

However, I dont see enviros screaming about mining disasters and
lobbying 
to get rid of the old Minig Act -- we are subsidizing all hard rocking 
mining because industry doesnt have to pay hardly anything for the
rights.

if we were paying what we should for VIRGIN resources, E-waste recycling

would be much more economic, and local governments perhaps could break
even 
on e-waste recycling.

Just a thought.


Michele Raymond
Publisher
Recycling Laws International
5111 Berwyn Rd. #115 College Park MD 20740
301 345 4237
http://www.raymond.com