Refurbishing Technician in Singapore |
This year I decided to return the favor. The BAN organization has taken on more responsibility, and has more clout. But it needs to mature, and take account of the unintended consequences of simplistic, cartoonish portrayals of the scrap and reuse industry. Simply scolding people like Robert Tonetti, Eric Harris of ISRI, or Eric Williams of Arizona State University won't do.
BAN has done well, and should be comfortable with their role as "certifier" or judge of proposed processes. It is very different from the role of "advocate". Unintended consequences are building up. Kenya is banning used computers, Egypt is intercepting working monitors intended for hospitals, and the best and brightest of contract manufacturing takeback programs in Indonesia were sent letters to stop imports (to refurbish only monitors generated in Indonesia - far lower quality than those they had purchased from the USA).
A Refurbishing Technician in Tatooine |
At times my discussions with (or around) BAN have been cordial, at times less so. The organization needs to recognize that protectionist and censorship and planned obsolescence are riding their good intentions. Tomorrow's post is a concrete example of an "export for repair" which BAN and I could not come to terms with 5 years ago. What the discussion of the tiny capacitor says about interpreting Basel Convention Annex IX (legal exports), about BAN's interpretation of the Convention, and what BAN is willing to do to win their argument, is cause for study by policy makers at the UN, at EPA, and at Interpol.
Tomorrow's post also unveils the breakdown between R2 Standards and E-Stewards Certification. BAN and WR3A had argued the rules governing a very small component which has led to millions of dollars of opportunities, warranty returns, outrageous claims of pollution, and a breakdown in civil discussion between well-meaning organizations: The Clone Wars is one suggested title, but really its (Factory) Return of the Capacitors. It looks a bit dry, which is why I'm going to set it aside for further editing tonight. But it tells a tale of people who do repair and refurbishment, people a lot like a young Anakin Skywalker repairing droids and sky racers in Episode I of Star Wars. In Episode I, you have a combination of images which are both sophisticated and primitive... That sums up the developing world today, where the most modern Cities may be found in non-OECD nations. The bigger the national boundary, the more jarring the city-state juxtaposition.
Next: The Capacitor Wars
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