The Importance of R2 Certification for Responsible Recycling

What is an R2 Certification and what does it entail?

During the last decade, Sustainable Electronics Recycling International (SERI) has developed Responsible Recycling as a standard for the electronics recycling industry. SERI, an ANSI-accredited standards development organization, has developed the R2 Standard: Responsible Recycling Practices for Use in Accredited Certification Programs.

It is a requirement that all R2 Certified recyclers must have a management system that complies with environmental, health and safety regulations, such as ISO or RIOS.

A written policy must be in place by R2 certified recyclers pledging to prioritize the use and recovery of material before considering less desirable solutions such as incineration and landfilling, which are only permitted “when there is no viable way to reuse or recycle materials.”

The third element relates to legal requirements

The fourth component is on-site environmental, health, and safety management

There are several requirements for qualifying downstream vendors under Article 5 – Focus Materials

The sixth principle of R2 Certification is to emphasize the quality of repair and reuse in the operations of R2 Certified recyclers. SERI shares this belief and expects R2 Certified recyclers to pay attention to the quality of repair and reuse in their operations.

The seventh step is to track throughput

The eighth provision provides guidance on the types of data-bearing devices and best practices for ensuring that they are data-free through destruction and sanitization.

The storage of informationThe security aspect of the program

Why Your Business Should Partner with a Certified Recycler

You can greatly reduce your liability and risk to your business, data, and brand if you choose a R2 Certified electronics facility. Once your business’s electronic equipment has been used, you do not want to worry about where it ends up, or where you should find its value in your inventory. Choosing an R2 Certified recycler will ensure that all of your risks are covered, so you will never be surprised by fines or negative press coverage because your assets have ended up in the wrong hands.

Why Choose Ewaste Cleanup

Ewaste Cleanup understands the complex regulatory environment that modern businesses face and the weight of your liability to these regulations at the same time that you are accountable for your customers, your brand, and your bottom line. Through responsible reuse and recovery, we will provide you with peace of mind by eliminating or mitigating these risks and driving revenue back into your business. Please contact us to discuss the unique risk situations you face and how Ewaste Cleanup can assist.

In Los Angeles, Ca, Ewaste Cleanup’s facility has been continuously R2 Certified and compliant since 2018. During the certification process, a SERI-approved certifying body conducts a multi-step audit, including site visits, interviews with employees, document review, and opportunities for corrective action to bring an operation into compliance across all aspects.

Each year, R2 Certification is re-audited in full, with interim surveillance audits conducted. It is only possible to claim R2 Certification for electronics recycling and ITAD if the facility conforms to all provisions of the standard, and has completed all required audits and oversight, and has completed all necessary paperwork and payments to SERI. A requirement of R2 practice is that the certificate holder also maintains a certified Environmental Health and Safety program. Ewaste Cleanup’s EHS system is certified by RIOS, a standard created specifically for the recycling industry.

A number of those bad-actor electronics recyclers were in trouble because they preferred quick and easy profits over responsibility and sustainability. They accepted no responsibility for their clients’ data or their downstream vendors, and they did not wish to take on the burden of refurbishing and remarketing equipment that was still valuable and useful. In order to send computers away from sight and out of mind, anyone may fill a shipping container with computers. By obtaining and maintaining R2 Certification, a recycler or ITAD provider has demonstrated that they are committed to clients and take their responsibilities seriously, as well as seeing the bigger picture of electronics recycling and IT security. In addition to being expensive and time-consuming, R2 certification is difficult to achieve. A recycler or ITAD provider who offers to take your assets for free or to pay you for them, without any questions asked or with no paper trail to follow, is unlikely to have taken the time and effort to become certified. In case you are suspicious, always request proof of certification.