ELECTRONICS BUYERS TO PAY NEW RECYCLING TAX TOXIC WASTE FOUND IN CATHODE RAY TUBES, LCD MONITORS.

Byline: Kerry Cavanaugh Staff Writer

New Year's Day will bring new e-waste recycling fees up to $10 on all televisions, computer monitors and laptop computers.

Those electronics are now banned from California landfills because the cathode ray tubes and liquid crystal display or LCD monitors contain toxic metals that can leach from dumps over time.

The new state fees are designed to reimburse agencies and businesses that collect e-waste and reuse the metals. Electronics prices will go up between $6 and $10, depending on the size of the screen.

``Consumers should know why they're paying the fee and why it's being assessed,'' said Chris Peck, spokesman for the California Integrated Waste Management Board. ``Even with an extra $6 on the price of a laptop computer, it's a small investment in the future to know that thing isn't going to end up polluting groundwater.''

State officials estimate some 6 million televisions and monitors containing cathode ray tubes are stored in people's garages and closets. They can cost upward of $30 apiece to recycle. Each can contain up to four pounds of lead and smaller amounts of chromium, mercury and other heavy metals 

Retailers will collect fees and send them to the state Board of Equalization, which will pay recyclers 48 cents per pound of e-waste. Recyclers must pass about 20 cents per pound on to cities and businesses that collect e-waste.

Most cities and counties have begun programs to collect e-waste. Los Angeles residents can take their junk electronics to one of five residential drop-off centers in the city. A temporary drop-off location is planned for Jan. 15 and 16 at the Boeing site at DeSoto Avenue and Gresham Street in Canoga Park.

Los Angeles recycling officials said they expect to get some help from the fees, but wonder how much the new program will help the city deal with its current $100,000-a-year e-waste disposal expense.

Some businesses have been warehousing electronics equipment until the new reimbursement system kicks in Jan. 1, and that could eat up much of the funds.

``It's a finite pot of money, and when it runs out it's unclear what will happen,'' said Michele McManus, head of the city's recycling division. ``I'm not changing our program or enhancing our program until we see.''

The fee was initially supposed to take effect July 1 of this year, but was postponed because of confusion over how the money would be collected, so holiday shoppers got a reprieve.

However, the list of e-waste products is getting longer. State toxics officials recently determined that plasma-screen and LCD televisions are hazardous waste and fall under the new fees as of July 1 of the new year.

Researchers are grinding up dozens of electronics products to see how much lead and heavy metals can leach out of the circuitry.

Kerry Cavanaugh, [phone]

kerry.cavanaugh(at)dailynews.com

WHERE TO GO

--Drop e-waste at 11025 Randall Street in Sun Valley. Other drop-off locations can be found at www.erecycle.org.

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