Chapter
507
2006 -- H 8220 AS AMENDED
Enacted 07/07/06
A N A C T
RELATING TO HEALTH
AND SAFETY -- MERCURY REDUCTION AND EDUCATION ACT
Introduced By: Representatives Handy, Ginaitt, Gallison, Ajello, and Pacheco
Date Introduced: June 08,
2006
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION
1. Section 23-24.9-10 of the General Laws in Chapter 23-24.9 entitled
"Mercury
Reduction and Education Act" is hereby amended to read as follows:
23-24.9-10.
Collection of mercury-added products. -- (a) After January 1, 2006, no
mercury-added
product shall be offered for final sale or use or distribution for promotional
purposes
in Rhode Island unless the manufacturer, either on its own or in concert with
other
persons,
has implemented a system, after review and approval of the director, for the
convenient
and
accessible collection of such products when the consumer is finished with them.
Where a
mercury-added
product is a component of another product, the collection system must provide
for
removal
and collection of the mercury-added component or collection of both the
mercury-added
component
and the product containing it. Mercury-added components in motor vehicles shall
be
collected
and recycled as provided for in subdivision (b)(2) of this section.
(b) (1) This section shall not apply to the collection of mercury-added button
cell
batteries
or mercury-added lamps or products where the only mercury contained in the
product
comes
from a mercury-added button cell battery or a mercury-added lamp; and
(2) Mercury-added components in motor vehicles at end-of-life shall be
collected and
recycled
as provided in this subsection. Significant, willful failure to comply with
rules and/or
regulations
to implement the provisions of this section shall constitute, as may be
determined by
the
department, a violation of the ban established in section 23-24.9-9. No scrap
recycling facility
or other
person that receives a flattened, crushed or baled end-of-life vehicle shall be
deemed to
be in
violation of subdivision 23-24.9-10(b)(2) and rules and regulations pursuant
thereto or
section
23-24.9-9 if a mercury switch is found in the vehicle after its acquisition.
For the purposes of subdivision 23-24.9-10(b)(2) the following terms shall have
the
following
meanings: (i) "Capture rate" means the annual removal, collection,
and recovery of
mercury
switches, as a percentage of the total number of mercury switches available for
removal
from end-of-life
vehicles as determined by the Department of Environmental Management.
Capture
rate shall not include mercury switches that are inaccessible due to
significant damage to
the
motor vehicle in the area where the mercury switch is located; (ii) "Mercury
added
component"
or "Mercury switch" means a mercury-added convenience light switch
assembly or
capsule
from an end-of-life motor vehicle; (iii) "Scrap recycling facility"
means a fixed location
where
machinery and equipment are utilized for processing and manufacturing scrap
metal into
prepared
grades and whose principal product is scrap iron, scrap steal, or nonferrous
metallic
scrap
for sale for remelting purposes; and (iv) "Vehicle recycler" means
and individual or entity
licensed
under the provisions of section 42-14.2-3 that engages in the business of
acquiring,
dismantling,
parts recycling from, or destroying six (6) or more end-of-life vehicles in a
calendar
year.
(A) Manufacturers of motor vehicles sold in Rhode Island that contain mercury
switches
shall,
individually or collectively, establish and implement a collection program for
mercury
switches
to achieve a capture rate of not less than fifty percent (50%) for calendar
year 2006, and
not less
than seventy percent (70%) for calendar year 2007 and each calendar year
thereafter
through
calendar year 2017. The collection program shall be subject to the following
requirements:
(i) On or before September 1, 2005, manufacturers of motor vehicles subject to
the
collection
program requirement shall submit to the department a plan setting forth a
proposed
collection
program. At a minimum, the plan shall:
(I) Explain how capture rate requirements are anticipated to be met through
implementation
of the plan;
(II) Ensure that mercury switches collected are managed in accordance with the
universal
waste rules adopted by the department;
(III) Provide the department and scrap recycling facilities and vehicle
recyclers with
information,
training and other technical assistance required to facilitate removal and
recycling of
mercury
switches in accordance with the universal waste rules;
(IV) Make available to the public information concerning services to remove
mercury
switches
in motor vehicles;
(V) The proposed collection program plan shall be subject to the review and
approval of
the
department, which may require adjustments or modifications to the plan.
(ii) By January 1, 2006, manufacturers of motor vehicles subject to the collection
program
requirement shall implement a collection program plan approved by the
department; and
(iii) For the calendar quarter ending March 31, 2006, and each calendar quarter
thereafter,
not later than forty-five (45) days following the close of the calendar
quarter,
manufacturers
of motor vehicles subject to the collection program requirement shall provide
quarterly
implementation reports to the department, which reports shall include the
number of
mercury
switches collected and the amount of mercury collected and recycled through the
collection
program. The report shall further include, but not be limited to: a detailed
description
and
documentation of the capture rate.
(B) In the event that the program set forth in subparagraph 23-24.9-10(b)(2)(A)
does not
achieve
the specified capture rates for any calendar year, the The
department shall develop, issue,
administer
and enforce regulation compelling the manufacturers of motor vehicles sold in
Rhode
Island
that contain mercury switches to undertake a collection program as set forth in
this
subparagraph,
23-24.9-10(b)(2)(B). Provided, however, that if the The
department shall
determine
that the failure to achieve the required capture rate in any each
year of the program and
shall
access whether any failure to achieve the capture rate was the result of a force-majeure,. The
department
shall report publicly on or before March 31, each year its findings with regard
to the
capture
rate during the prior year. the
department may extend the program established pursuant to
subparagraph
23-24.9-10(b)(2)(A) for a period of not less than one calendar quarter and not
greater
than the number of whole calendar quarters equal to the number of calendar
quarters
affected
by the force-majeure and shall substitute the capture rates achieved in such
calendar
quarter(s)
for the captures rates achieved in the calendar quarter(s) affected by the
force-majeure;
the
department shall recalculate the annual capture rate for the year affected by
the force-majeure
using
the substitute calendar quarter(s) to determine whether the annual capture rate
requirements
set
forth in subparagraph 23-24.9-10(b)(2)(A) were met. The manufacturer or manufacturers shall
pay
the The total cost of the
removal, replacement, collection and recovery system for mercury
switches,
under this subparagraph, 23-24.9-10(b)(2)(B), to the vehicle recycler or
scrap recycling
facility
that removed the switch. shall be
borne by the manufacturer or manufacturers. The total
cost
shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(i) A a minimum of three dollars ($3.00) five dollars
($5.00) for each mercury switch
removed
by a vehicle recycler or by a scrap recycling facility, as partial compensation
for the
labor and
other costs incurred in the removal of the mercury switch, to be paid to the
vehicle
recycler
or the scrap recycling facility that removed the switch;.
(ii) One dollar ($1.00) for each mercury switch removed by a vehicle
recycler or by a
scrap
recycling facility to be paid to the department as partial compensation to the
department for
costs
incurred in administering and enforcing the provisions of this subchapter and
providing
services
related thereto which may include but shall not be limited to:
Training;
Packaging in which to transport mercury switches to recycling, storage or
disposal
facilities;
Shipping of mercury switches to recycling, storage or disposal facilities;
Recycling, storage or disposal of the mercury switches;
Public education materials and presentations; and
Maintenance of appropriate systems and procedures to protect the environment
from
mercury
contamination.
(3) The provisions of subdivision 23-24.9-10(b)(2) shall satisfy collection
programs and
disposal
requirements for mercury switches for all motor vehicles sold in the state.
SECTION
2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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LC03427/2
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