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Presentations May 23 – 25, 2005

Presentations May 23 – 25, 2005 Portland, Maine For related information visit: http://www.newmoa.org/prevention/mercury/conferences. Thermostat Product Stewardship Initiative.

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Presentations May 23 – 25, 2005

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  1. Presentations May 23 – 25, 2005 Portland, Maine For related information visit: http://www.newmoa.org/prevention/mercury/conferences

  2. Thermostat Product Stewardship Initiative Mercury Reduction Conference Portland, Maine - May 23, 2005

  3. Product Stewardship Institute • Founded in December 2000 at UMASS/Lowell • Incorporated as national non-profit (501 c 3) in Coalition/Affiliate Members • 31 State agency members • 27 Local agency members • Pledge work w/PSI on product stewardship issues • December 2004 (moved to Boston MA) • Board of Directors: 7 state/4 local

  4. PSI Mission • “…assists state and local government agencies in establishing cooperative agreements with industry and developing other initiatives that reduce the health and environmental impacts from consumer products.”

  5. PSI Projects • Mercury Switch Thermostats • Electronics (Staples pilot, NEPSI) • Paint (Benjamin Moore pilot) • Pharmaceuticals • Radioactive Devices • Tires • Pressurized Gas Cylinders

  6. Thermostat Project Champions • OR DEQ • King County, WA • Seattle, WA • EPA Region 5

  7. PSI Dialogue Process • Thermostat Stewardship Action Plan • Research • Stakeholder Interviews • Dialogue (2 meetings) • Survey: Issues (7) and Strategies (35) • Work groups • Agreements • Implement agreements/projects

  8. Stakeholders • Industry • Thermostat manufacturers • Honeywell, General Electric, White-Rodgers, Invensys Climate Controls • Thermostat Recycling Corporation (TRC) • HVAC wholesalers • HVAC contractors • Demolition contractors • Retailers (Home Depot)

  9. Stakeholders • Government • U.S. EPA Region 5 • 12 State • 6 local governments • NEWMOA • Other • Energy utility • Environmental group (OEC)

  10. Thermostat Problem Statement • A significant number of thermostats contain mercury, which is a potent neurotoxin. • Improper waste handling/disposal of mercury thermostats can result in mercury releases. • Small fraction of mercury thermostats being collected. • Estimated 11 million thermostats removed in 2003 in the US, according to Frost & Sullivan market report • 65,000 mercury thermostats recovered through TRC • Mercury thermostats continue to be sold.

  11. Point of Agreement All stakeholders believe the collection and recycling of mercury thermostats should be encouraged and increased.

  12. Dialogue Focus • Collection and recycling • HVAC Contractors/Wholesalers • Homeowners/non-professionals • Demolition contractors • New thermostat sales

  13. Dialogue Goals (1) Increase the collection of mercury-containing thermostats from HVAC contractors and electrical wholesalers through the TRC program.

  14. Dialogue Goals (2) Increase the collection of mercury-containing thermostats from homeowners, demolition contractors, and other non-HVAC contractors through the TRC program and/or other mechanisms.

  15. Dialogue Goals (3) Explore the benefits and costs of various types of thermostats, and identify the opportunities and viability of replacing mercury thermostats with non-mercury alternatives.

  16. Priority Issues • Increase HVAC contractor awareness • Increase options for HVAC contractor collection • Increase HVAC contractor motivation to participate • Measure success of collection program • Provide for homeowner/non-HVAC contractor collection • Provide for demolition contractor collection • Reduce or eliminate the sale of mercury thermostats

  17. Current Projects • Improve Chain HVAC Wholesaler Participation in TRC Program (March 2005) • 31 states where wholesaler headquarters located • TRC Expansion To HVAC Contractor Collection Locations (March 2005) • Include larger urban and rural HVAC contractors • Goal: double number of collection points by end 2005 • Pilot Project To Collect Thermostats From HVAC Wholesalers Via HHW Programs (Fall 2005)

  18. Other Project Agreements • Pilot project to test a financial incentive for HVAC contractors that collect and recycle mercury thermostats and replace them with energy star thermostats (OR, IN, King Cty WA) • Mail-back pilot project • HVAC contractor outreach strategy • Retailer/homeowner education strategy

  19. Other Project Agreements • Third dialogue meeting to address mercury thermostat sales and other remaining issues: • Demolition contractor collection • Homeowner collection • HVAC contractor collection

  20. For more information Product Stewardship Institute, Inc. Scott Cassel Executive Director (617) 236-4855 scott@productstewardship.us http://www.productstewardship.us

  21. Presentations May 23 – 25, 2005 Portland, Maine

  22. Phasing Out Mercury Switch Thermostats John James Maine DEP May 23, 2005 John.james@maine.gov (207) 287-7866

  23. The Problem • Annual consumption of Hg in thermostats is about 20 tons [2001 data] • Thermostats in use in U.S. represent a Hg reservoir of at least 200 tons. • Each year, thermostats containing 10 to 15 tons of mercury are taken out of service. • A small fraction of this mercury [<5%] is known to be recycled

  24. Estimated Annual Consumption of Mercury in Products Total annual consumption = 280 tons

  25. Estimated Mercury Reservoirs in Products Total =1968 tons

  26. The Alternative • Electronic thermostats: • Do not have mercury switches • Readily available in the marketplace • Equal or superior in performance to mercury switch thermostats • Programmable, allowing energy savings from timed setback • Generally more reliable, longer service life than mercury switch thermostats

  27. The Solution • Legislation is the only way to ensure a rapid end to the sale of mercury switch thermostats because: • Honeywell enjoys monopoly profits from its round dial, mercury switch thermostat • Honeywell is invested in the mercury switch technology; unlikely to change on its own • Contractor resistance/homeowner preference

  28. States that have banned the sale of mercury switch thermostats • Connecticut effective July 1, 2004 • Rhode Island effective July 1, 2005 • California, Maine, Oregon, and Vermont effective January 1, 2006 • Michigan effective January 1, 2010

  29. Options for banning the sale of mercury switch thermostats • Product specific ban targeting thermostats only, e.g.: “Effective ____, a person may not sell or offer to sell a mercury-added thermostat.” • Generic ban targeting all mercury switches, e.g.: “Effective ____, a person may not sell or offer to sell a mercury switch individually or as a product component.” • Generic ban targeting products based on Hg amount: “Effective ____, a person may not sell or offer to sell a product containing more than one gram of mercury.”

  30. Is exemption language needed? • Most states with thermostat bans authorize exemptions if the manufacturer shows: • Hg thermostats provide a net benefit to public health or the environment; and • A collection system is in place to ensure the thermostats do not end up the trash. • Manufacturers have been denied exemptions in Connecticut (Nov 2003) and Maine (Aug 2004). • Maine Board of Environmental Protection unanimously upheld the exemption denial in a deliberate, 27-page decision (May 2005).

  31. Thermostats for the blind • Maine law provides: After January 1, 2006, a person may not sell … a mercury-added thermostat except for a thermostat used by a blind or visually impaired person. • This language has proven unnecessary. • Affordable, non-mercury thermostats adapted or adaptable for use by the blind are readily available. 

  32. Thermostat take-back in Maine • Manufacturer run TRC collection program captured about 1000 thermostats in 2004, 5% of estimated number available for collection. • To improve collection numbers, Maine’s thermostat take-back law was amended to require thermostat wholesalers to participate in the TRC program [see PL 2003, c. 640, eff. July 30, 2004] • About 70 wholesalers are subject to this requirement and have been provided with collection bins.

  33. We are considering amending Maine law to read: A manufacturer of thermostats that contain mercury or a manufacturer of thermostats that may replace thermostats that contain mercury shall … provide incentives for and sufficient information to purchasers and consumers of the thermostats for the purchasers or consumers to ensure that mercury in thermostats being removed from service is reused, recycled recycled or otherwise [kept out of solid waste or wastewater]. A manufacturer that has complied with this subsection is not liable for improper disposal by purchasers or consumers of thermostats. Manufacturer collection programs conducted in accordance with universal waste rules adopted by the department meet the requirements of this subsection provided the programs capture a substantial percentage of the waste mercury thermostats available for collection, as determined by the department in consultation with the Mercury Products Advisory Committee. Rationale: Manufacturers argue that the current language requires only that they make a program available; they are under no obligation to help ensure the service is used. Possible amendment to Maine’s thermostat take-back law

  34. References / Resources • North American HVAC Thermostat and Temperature Control Markets, Frost & Sullivan (May, 2000) • A Review of Thermostat Energy Efficiency and Pricing , Lowell Center for Sustainable Production (May 2003) • Eco Manufacturing, LLC v. Honeywell International, S. D. Ind., June 2003 • A Plan to Improve the Collection of Mercury Thermostats, Maine Department of Environment (January 2004) • Findings of Fact and Order re: Appeal of Department Decision Denying Request for Exemption from the Prohibition on Sale of Mercury Thermostats, Maine Board of Environmental Protection (May 2004)

  35. Presentations May 23 – 25, 2005 Portland, Maine

  36. GREEN FOR GREEN Contractor Incentive Collection Pilot Presented by Jan Whitworth Oregon DEQ

  37. BACKGROUND • Policy Directive in 2000: Product Stewardship Solutions for Mercury Products • Legislation in 2001 • Label for safe disposal • HVAC installer notification • Ban on installation in 2006

  38. Background cont’d • Thermostats Good Product Stewardship Option • Economical replacements • Industry recovery program exists • Room to grow in Oregon • Collaboration with Product Stewardship Institute (PSI)

  39. Survey Summary - Wholesalers • 41% (17 of 42) Participate in TRC Program • 100% Increased Awareness Needed • 87% Support Incentive Program

  40. Survey Summary - Contractors • 900 Surveys Mailed Out • 232 Surveys Returned • 60 Participants, 172 Non-participants in TRC Program

  41. Contractor Survey – What We Learned • TRC Program Easy and Convenient to Use • 57% TRC Program easy to use and drop off convenient • Most use program 2 plus years • Participants plan to continue using TRC program • 95% of mercury thermostats from participating contractors recycled through TRC

  42. Contractor Survey – What We Learned • Awareness about TRC Program a Problem • Half non-participating contractors not aware • Half non-participating contractors would use if they knew • Many did not know where to drop off thermostats • Most want information via mail and web

  43. Contractor Survey – What We Learned • If Participating Contractors Had TRC Box • >1/2 recycle more thermostats • >1/2 accept from non-employee contractors • >1/2 accept from homeowners

  44. “Green for Green” Project Objectives • Increase Recovery from 1000 to 4000 Thermostats • Institutionalize and Sustain Behavior to Use TRC Program • Save Energy by Promoting Energy Star Replacements • Test the Rebate Model to Accomplish These Objectives

  45. What is “Green for Green”? • HVAC Contractors Receive One Rebate Coupon for Each Mercury Thermostat They Return to TRC Wholesaler • HVAC Contractors Receive a $4 Rebate for Each Coupon Used Toward the Purchase of a New Energy Star Thermostat from a Wholesaler

  46. Who are the “Green for Green” Partners? • Oregon DEQ – project implementation • Portland General Electric – Finance Rebates • Third Party Organization – Collection and Rebate Management • Contractors, Wholesalers – use program • Product Stewardship Institute (PSI) – Coordination and Project Evaluation

  47. “Green for Green” Project Components • 1 Year Pilot • Promotion – Direct Mail, Brochure, Display • Collection Buckets for Technicians • Wholesalers -Track and Manage Coupons • Contractors – Turn in Thermostats, Use Rebates, Encourage Technicians • Pledge Program for Contractors

  48. How Much “Green for Green”? Portland General Electric = $20,000 for Rebate Program Third Party Organization = $1 per rebate transaction Contractor = $4 per thermostat collected/purchased

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