China is banning imports of used television sets and other electronic scrap in a bid to clean up its environment, complaining that the United States, Japan, and others are using it as a dumping ground, a government newspaper said recently.
BEIJING — China is banning imports of used television sets and other electronic scrap in a bid to clean up its environment, complaining that the United States, Japan, and others are using it as a dumping ground, a government newspaper said recently.
The ban takes effect Monday, the China Daily newspaper reported.
China has a thriving industry in recycling televisions, computer parts, and other electronic scrap. Much of the work is done by hand with few health and safety precautions, and material that isn't recycled is dumped or burned, releasing toxic chemicals into the ground and air.
"The government's latest action shows that it has, at least in some aspects, changed its policy of always putting economic concerns in front of less tangible needs such as the environment," the China Daily said.
It complained that "countries like Japan and the United States have traditionally dumped goods like" televisions and refrigerators in China as scrap.
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The new regulation includes a list of banned goods — mostly electronics — and tighter restrictions on how to handle imports that still are permitted, the report said.
"If the new regulation is correctly observed, the long-term effects should be an industry which recycles a better quality of spares (second-hand parts) and a better-protected environment," the China Daily said.
Source: Associated Press
