California consumers will pay a point-of-sale recycling fee on an estimated 27,000 new device models with hard-to-remove batteries beginning next month, and electronics recycling companies will soon be able to seek reimbursement for processing those devices.
Korea Zinc, the South Korean metals giant that has made a large push into the U.S. electronics recycling industry in recent years, is planning a U.S. smelter that could serve as a domestic outlet for circuit boards and other end-of-life materials.
Shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd has filed legal action against a Missouri scrap electronics exporter, alleging the company mischaracterized the materials it was exporting and concealed lithium-ion batteries in exported loads. The situation came to light after a shipping container caught fire last month.
The U.S. Department of Energy is currently accepting applications for up to $136 million in federal funding for projects demonstrating commercial viability of recovering rare earth elements from end-of-life electronics and other material streams. Several prominent companies have expressed interest.