Hans Kernkamp, general manager and chief engineer of the Riverside County Waste Management Department, observed that additional fees could have the unintended effect of facilitating improper disposal of e-waste.
He has inquired of Waste Management Inc., the company that operates the Idyllwild Transfer Station, if it would consider waiving the fee if “those costs were born by a recycler. It is likely a recycler would even pay WMI a portion of the State reimbursement fees in exchange for allowing them to collect e waste [at the Transfer Station].Kernkamp said he had not yet heard back.
He said WMI said they needed the fees to cover their collection, packaging and transportation costs. “They also referenced the free collection events that the County [our Department] holds twice a year, as a way for residents to avoid paying the fee.
WMI recently enforced e-waste disposal fees at the Idyllwild Transfer Station, ($25 per electronic waste item for televisions, computer screens or similarly covered electronic items).
As a result of the new fees, Idyllwild residents who recycle covered electronic equipment at the station could be paying up to $40 per item to properly dispose of used equipment.
