Costa Rica will continue to export its e-waste

Friday November 8 th 2011

Our country has a huge potential for growth in terms of recovery and disassembly of e-waste.

Costa Rica will continue exporting disassembled parts of phones, monitors, CPUs, and different electronic devices. Because of the components and high level of toxicity of these devices, which are disarmed in national soil, it will continue sending them to overseas companies that are able to process them correctly, since the domestic industry in our country cannot deal with these materials.

So was explained by the executive director of the Association of Entrepreneurs for Electronic Waste Management (Asegire, Spanish initials). At present, there are 23 companies devoted to the trade of electronic equipment, among them we can mention: GBM, Epson, Grupo Monge, Ricoh, CoCoCo, Samsung, Sony, Panasonic, and Sasso.

The country has potential in terms of maximization of recovery and disassembly of electronic waste; nevertheless, that can only be achieved if the Costa Rican population becomes aware of the effects that these electronic materials have on health and the environment, but for now the industry is only capable of disassembling and exporting such electronic equipment to be treated abroad.

So far, eleven companies have been authorized by the Ministry of Health as managers to responsibly dispose of electronic devices. The countries where such materials are processed are: Canada, United States, Belgium, China, and other countries where specialized industries operate.

As an example of the profit achieved from such electronic materials, the market pays $ 2 to $ 9 per kilo, which in our country would be a thousand and four thousand colones colones per kilo.

For this purpose, our country is encouraging collection centers in different parts of the country, called "ambientados", which collect plastic, cardboard, paper and electrical products, devoting one day of the week to each kind. For example, sometimes they collect plastic, cardboard, paper and another day they collect electronic materials.

Actually, there are 33 collection centers: Teletica, Recicladora Capri, County Recycling Program of the Municipality of San Jose, Servicios Ecológicos, Municipality of Barva, Municipality of Heredia, the Administrative Board of the Electrical Service of the Municipality of Cartago (JASEC, Spanish initials), COOMUREC in Filadelfia, Guanacaste, Super Luperon in Playas del Coco, San Carlos, Perez Zeledon, INBioparque, Municipality of Limon, Alberto Echandi School in Ciudad Neilly, Quepos, Desamparados, Oreamuno, the Centro de Transferencias de Desechos Sólidos of Hatillo, Jacó, Tres Ríos, Pital de San Carlos, Liberia, Asociación Domingueña de Gestión Ambiental (ADOGA, Spanish initials) in Santo Domingo de Heredia, Coronado Park, Naranjo Park, San Rafael de Alajuela, Urbanización Meza in Alajuela, Tarrazú, Pocosol, Fundación Promundo, Aserrí, San Pablo de Heredia, and San Ramon.

As for the collection of electronic waste in the “ambientados” program, it takes place every four months in the following points: Trisan Muelle: Cruce de Muelles in San Carlos, across from the service station.

Trisan Carrillo: 1Km of the crossing of Playas del Coco, on the road to Filadelfia, to the right.

Trisan La Uruca: 100 m South of Romero & Fournier, next to the Imprenta Nacional. What is received: TVs, computer screens (unbroken), laptops, keyboards, CPU's, ups, mouse, and cell phones. What is not received: Appliances (refrigerators, irons, fans, stoves, ovens, microwaves, etc.), stereos, cassette players, room telephones, faxes, discman, or walkman.