EPA Honors LG Electronics USA With Gold Award In 2014 Responsible Electronics Recycling Challenge
LG Recognized for Leadership with Certified Third-Party Recyclers
WASHINGTON, Sept. 23, 2014 /3BL Media/ – Sustaining its leadership in responsible electronics recycling, LG Electronics USA was recognized today by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency with the 2014 Gold Tier Award in the EPA’s Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) Program.
The Gold Tier Award recognizes LG’s significant contributions to the EPA’s SMM Electronics Challenge goals by increasing the amount of used electronics collected for reuse and recycle, sending 100 percent of used electronics collected to certified third-party recyclers, and publicly sharing detailed information about its electronic management practices.
“Electronics are made of valuable resources such as precious metals, copper, plastic and glass – all of which require energy to extract and manufacture,” said Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “Improper handling of discarded electronics can result in serious health consequences to communities and workers. The efforts by these leaders to collect, track and recycle used electronics is a great step towards addressing these public health concerns, conserving materials, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
William Cho, president and CEO, LG Electronics USA, expressed his appreciation to EPA, stating: “This special recognition underscores LG’s commitment to refurbishing and recycling even more used electronics. And, by using third-party certified recyclers, we’re helping to drive the use of environmentally protective practices. LG’s leadership in the SMM Challenge reflects our already strong commitment to building a robust market for electronic recycling in the U.S.”
In 2013 alone, LG Electronics USA collected and responsibly recycled 22,559 metric tons of used electronics – equivalent to diverting more than 21,000 metric tons of solid waste from the landfill. Put another way, the positive environmental impact of LG’s 2013 responsible recycling
is equal to taking 12.500 passenger cars off the road for a year or saving enough energy to power more than 3,000 U.S. homes for a year. At collection events, LG encourages consumers to replace recycled electronics with new, more energy efficient ENERGY STAR® certified LG TV and monitors, Cho explained.
Underscoring its commitment to responsible recycling LG Electronics Inc. is the first “Global e-Stewards Enterprise.” The e-Stewards standard, developed by the Basel Action Network, is the world’s most rigorous certification program for electronics recyclers. It prevents the export and dumping of toxic electronic waste in developing countries and calls for safeguards to protect private data and to ensure that recycling plant workers are not exposed to toxic materials.
“Sustainability is a core value at LG,” said Cho. “From our industry-leading commitments to reduce carbon emissions in our U.S. operations by 50 percent by 2020,* to our ambitious efforts to bring more high-efficiency ENERGY STAR qualified products to market, LG is committed to enhancing consumers’ lives through innovation. Life’s good when you live green.”
Learn more about LG’s responsible electronics recycling programs and overall sustainability efforts by visiting www.lgrecyclingprogram.com/
* Compared with a 2008 baseline.
About LG Electronics USA
LG Electronics USA, Inc., based in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., is the North American subsidiary of LG Electronics, Inc., a $53 billion global force and technology leader in consumer electronics, home appliances and mobile communications. In the United States, LG Electronics sells a range of stylish and innovative home appliances, home entertainment products, mobile phones, commercial displays, air conditioning systems and solar energy solutions, all under LG’s “Life's Good” marketing theme. LG Electronics is a 2014 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year. For more information, please visit www.lg.com.
MEDIA CONTACT:
LG Electronics USA
John I. Taylor,
202-719-3490,
john.taylor@lge.com
