UPDATE: DFLEC Legislative Action Alerts

Oh and one more thing...

This is one more action alert that came to our attention after sending out the newsletter earlier today.

We are asking you to SUPPORT SF 1690. A copy of the testimony we are submitting is below. This bill came close to passing last year, so we need a push now!

The SF 1690 100% eWaste bill is in State & Local Government and will be heard on Tuesday at noon: 03/11/25 12:00 PM in 1200 Minnesota Senate Bldg. - State and Local Government

Please sign up to testify by 1PM on Monday, and/or let the committee chairs and your Senator know that you are in support of it.

Re: S.F. 1690 Kupec

March 5, 2025

Dear Chair Hawj and members of the Senate Environment, Climate, and Legacy Committee,

We write on behalf of the DFL Environmental Caucus. Our mission is to educate and mobilize the citizens of Minnesota to address the climate crisis and to protect, preserve, and restore the natural environment. We strongly support SF1690 and urge you to vote yes on this important bill as it will benefit our health, our economy, and our environment and make it much easier for homeowners to recycle their e-waste.

Minnesota is currently capturing a mere 23.7% of its e-waste. This means that heavy metals such as mercury and lead end up being incinerated or in our landfills, creating significant harmful impacts to the environment and our health. The MDH reports that “exposure to mercury can damage the central nervous system, kidneys, and liver.” There is no safe level of lead. The MDH also states that “ lead can damage the brain, kidneys, and nervous system”… and is “most dangerous to infants, children and pregnant women as lead can also slow development or cause learning, behavior, and hearing problems.”

We are also losing valuable metals such as copper, and silver, needed for our energy transition. According to the August 2023 Study of The Economic Potential of E-Waste and Recycling in Minnesota, If 100% of our e-waste was recycled, it would generate 3,345 jobs, 78 million pounds of valuable elements and save us $3.2 billion each year. Enough silver would be recovered each year to produce 441,000 solar panels and enough copper for 155,000 EVs.

Recycling rather than mining and processing new metals also saves significant amounts of energy and reduces the carbon footprint, as shown in the table below from the 2008 report by the Bureau of International Recycling. For example, copper recycling emits 65% less greenhouse gas pollution than mining, and nickel recycling produces 90% fewer emissions. This is a win-win for our energy transition, and helps to eliminate the need to create new toxic copper-nickel sulfide mines that have never been operated without causing significant damage to the environment.

SF 1690 requires the manufacturer to cover the costs of collecting their products. This will greatly reduce the problem of homeowners who stash away old electronics or illegally put them in the trash to avoid the cost of proper disposal.

We urge you to support SF1690 to keep toxic heavy metals out of our landfills and incinerators, and to help us reach our clean energy goals, with benefits to our economy and health, and our environment.

Sincerely,

Veda Kanitz, Greg Laden, DFLEC Legislative Committee Cochairs

Cc. Megan Bond, DFLEC Chair