Product Examples

Product stewardship has influenced the production, sale and disposal of numerous products. A few examples include:

• Batteries—Because batteries can contain toxic ingredients such as mercury, they pose a potential threat to human health and the environment when improperly disposed. However, manufacturers have been redesigning them to reduce mercury content. The addition of recyclable batteries has resulted in less being thrown in the waste stream, and many states have employed battery recycling laws. As a result, retailers will often take in used batteries to be recycled.
• Electronics—Electronics also contain chemicals like lead and mercury, and with the increase in technology can become obsolete in only a few years. State laws prevent aim to prevent these items from ending up in landfills, and companies/retailers have started takeback programs for them. As technology grows, companies are finding ways to make electronics more energy efficient and less reliant on packaging. Electronics often get second life from consumers when they are donated to charities and reused.
• Household Products—The federal government has required that products around the house that are potentially dangerous to the environment be marked accordingly. As a proactive measure, more companies are producing eco-friendly products with less toxins. Local governments are also holding events so consumers can bring in their household hazardous waste (HHW), which includes items like motor oil, paint and pesticides.
• Packaging—Most packaging is usually cardboard or plastic, both of which are recyclable materials. However, plastic takes lots of energy and resources to produce, so more and more companies and retailers are using less of it. Consumers can also help the situation by purchasing items packaged in recycled content, which helps to close the loop after products are recycled.
• Vehicles—It’s old news that cars contribute greenhouse gases to the environment and consume energy. But new innovations like hybrids and electric vehicles not only increase gas mileage; they reduce emissions and prevent air pollution. Local governments are implementing ways to power public transportation vehicles on renewable energy. In addition, cars and other vehicle are made from highly valuable and recyclable materials like steel. When car parts are recycled, it provides the material for new vehicles to be produced.