February 23, 2006
Will California sign on to RoHS?
Calif. bill would bar toxins in cell phones, iPods
California would require manufacturers to phase out the use of hazardous materials in making cell phones, iPods and other electronic devices under a bill introduced by a state lawmaker.
The bill unveiled on Thursday by Assembly Member Lori Saldana, a Democrat from San Diego, would apply to any electronic or battery-operated device. The bill, which was introduced on Wednesday, would require manufacturers to stop using the substances in devices sold in California by 2008.
“We know that the manufacturers of these products are able to produce them without including harmful toxic materials,” Saldana said in a written statement. “California deserves to be included among the markets that receive this cleaner stream of consumer electronics.”
By 2008? I thought they were actually trying to make changes?
By June of 2006, all electronics sold into Europe need to be compliant with RoHS (Reduction of Hazardous Substances). For all of us in the computer industry, the question we get from EVERYONE these days is “Is this RoHS compliant?” or “When will you have RoHS-compliant product?” Up until recent times, lead has been a primary component of electronic solder, and every piece of electronic equipment you purchase has a printed circuit with components soldered to it.
RoHS has a lot of technical hurdles. There are reasons that certain hazardous substances were chosen for the places they are used: they work. And they work well. They work better than the alternatives, and the manufacturing processes used for the clean components have much tighter tolerances and much less margin of error. That’s not to say it’s not worth it to get rid of hazardous substances in manufacturing, but that it’s costly and difficult.
Why is it that California is waiting until 2008, though? Most electronics manufacturers already work to meet a worldwide market, and the US will be the beneficiary of Europe’s regulations even if we don’t institute them ourselves. Even companies who sell mainly to the US know that these regulations can’t be too far away here, so they need to be ready to supply to these standards anyway.
You know why this bill doesn’t take effect until 2008? Because this California State Representative, like most politicians, doesn’t have a clue what she’s talking about! Anyone who understood the situation would know that initiating the bill this late puts you too far out to make Europe’s June 2006 deadline, but the state can be ready by 2007.
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