ERI, the nation’s largest fully integrated IT and electronics asset disposition provider and cybersecurity-focused hardware destruction company, has successfully met the standards of the e-Stewards Performance Verification (PV) Program in back-to-back years, which includes unannounced random inspections and GPS tracking.

An initiative of environmental advocacy organization Basel Action Network, e-Stewards is a market-based solution to help individuals and organizations identify and promote electronics recyclers who ensure that used electronics are managed with the highest environmental and social responsibility standards. A unique part of the e-Stewards organization certification, the PV Program helps ensure that recyclers adhere to global environmental justice principles “even when no one is looking.” Through this program, Basel Action Network recently reported that between 2021 and 2022, 18 e-Stewards certified recyclers at 22 locations, including ERI, have been “caught doing the right thing” through unannounced on-site inspections and randomly delivered GPS trackers.

“Our e-Stewards processors insisted on the Performance Verification Program to create an additional layer of assurance for their businesses,” said Selena Turnock, e-Stewards Certification Director. “This program demonstrates e-Stewards processors walk the walk and conduct their operations in accordance with our highest standard for environmental health and safety in all of their processes, every day of the year.”

To be e-Stewards certified, all recyclers agree to two forms of performance verification. First, random, unannounced inspections ensure compliance above and beyond the routine annual audits accomplished by accredited third-party certification bodies. Performance Verification inspections are carried out by qualified consultant auditors employed directly by e-Stewards. Inspectors can arrive at any working hour and can request paperwork, interview employees, and examine loading docks and floor operations. This measure helps confirm that e-Stewards conform to the highest standards even when an audit isn’t on their calendars.

The e-Stewards program also embeds EarthEye GPS trackers in electronic scrap and drops it off at e-Stewards-certified locations to see if downstream pathways fulfill their international trade obligations. The results are announced two years after the trackers are deployed.

Twelve locations, including ERI, demonstrated good behavior in downstream waste management via EarthEye GPS trackers in 2021. ERI was also among the ten companies that successfully fulfilled expectations in the unannounced inspections performed in 2022.

“As one of the founding members of the e-Stewards program, we’re proud to continue leading the way in making the world a better place and setting a high bar year after year for responsible recycling of e-waste,” said John Shegerian, ERI’s Chairman and CEO. “We look to continue building upon this success in the coming years.”

“Performance Verification is a distinguishing feature of what it means to be a Certified e-Stewards Processor,” said Turnock. “We commend e-Stewards processors such as ERI for their responsiveness, patience, cooperation, and especially their integrity — as proven by the extra-curricular tests and inspections we conduct.”

ERI is the largest fully integrated IT and electronics asset disposition provider and cybersecurity-focused hardware destruction company in the United States. ERI is certified at the highest level by all leading environmental and data security oversight organizations to de-manufacture, recycle, and refurbish every type of electronic device in an environmentally responsible manner. It is the first and only company in its industry to achieve carbon neutrality at all its facilities nationwide, and the first to achieve SOC 2 Type I and II certifications for security and data protection. ERI has the capacity to process more than a billion pounds of electronic waste annually at its eight certified locations, serving every zip code in the United States. ERI’s mission is to protect people, the planet and privacy. For more information about e-waste recycling and ERI, call 1-800-ERI-DIRECT or visit https://eridirect.com.

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