How will green IT laws impact your business?

...consigned to the ground, in terms of leaching lead into the water table and soil, is one of the major driving forces behind the new regulations.

Why is this so important to businesses and other organisations using electronic equipment?

A key factor is the level at which the regulations begin to bite; in essence, anybody who generates more than 200kg of hazardous waste per annum has an obligation to register with the Environment Agency.

When you consider that an average CRT monitor weighs between 17kg and 19kg, having more than 10 redundant computer monitors is likely to bring the owner under the remit of the regulations.

With the Environment Agency tasked with policing the regulations and controlling the disposal of waste, businesses and public bodies have to confirm whether they are producers of hazardous waste and demonstrate that they have measures in place to deal with it.

Having an effective and demonstrable solution is no longer a matter of showing your organisation’s commitment to corporate social responsibility; it's now a legal requirement.

Once an organisation has registered with the Environment Agency, and with strict rules in place for the safe transport and processing of hazardous material, they have to demonstrate that they are disposing of the waste responsibly.

Unregulated practices for electronic equipment disposal — typified by the 'white van' taking away disused products from premises, no questions asked — are no longer acceptable.

Landfill site operators are controlled by new Waste Acceptance Criteria (WAC), which applies to all hazardous waste. These prohibit landfill operators from accepting untreated hazardous waste, such as CRT monitors, and they must have procedures in place to ensure that only compliant and pre-treated waste is land-filled. Previously, there were in excess of 200 landfill sites across England and Wales able to accept the material, whereas less than ten are now licensed to do so. As a result, legitimate operators will not accept untreated waste arriving from dubious sources.

Equally, the 'white van' option is ruled out by...

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