Facts About VCRs

Though not the hottest item at the electronics store today, VCRs were all we had for some time.

Just the Facts

• In 1990, more than 200 million VCRs were sold worldwide.
• Sales of VCRs decreased from 23 million in 2000 to 15.7 million in 2001.
• In 2002, 90 percent of U.S. households were still using VCRs.

Old, end-of-life (EOL) VCRs are considered e-waste. E-waste constitutes all electronic devices that need to be discarded.

E-Waste

• The International Association of Electronics Recyclers (IAER) predicts that an average of 400 million consumer electronic products will be disposed of every year. Along with this, the U.S. EPA determined that between 1 and 4 percent of all solid waste in the U.S. is consumer electronics.
• It is estimated that out of 8.7 million tons of e-waste, only 2.1 million tons are recycled.
• At ASL Recycling, 400,000 to 500,000 pounds of e-waste are recycled every month.
• According to a nonprofit Computer Takeback Campaign in San Francisco, e-waste constitutes the fastest growing portion of our waste stream.
• Electronics can contain mercury, lead, cadium, brominated flame retardants, arsenic and PVC which become toxic when chemicals leach into ground water. This typically occurs when electronics are placed in a landfill.
• Some states, such as Maryland, California, Washington and Maine, have established regulations and laws regarding e-waste recycling fees.
• From the circuit board to the plastic, most materials in DVD players can be recycled back into that component. You can find information on where to recycle DVD players using Earth911.