Do you think co's should be req'd to have a plastic/e-waste rtrn policy?

This is a tricky question because most plastic is not easily recyclable. Companies have even gone as far as to hijack the recycle logo for their resin code. [1] Resin codes #3 , #4, #5, #6 and #7 are generally tougher to recycle and are not universally collected in local recycling programs. [2] If in doubt, get a tour of your landfills recycling center and watch closely what is happening. Most of the sorted plastic ends up in the landfill. I do not envy the workers that have to smell this stuff all day long.

If our goal is to get companies to recycle all the resin types then they would either need a substantial tax cut to incentivize it or they would have to be required to do it and the costs would be passed onto the consumer. This probably sounds great in theory but experience tells me companies will fight this and game the system every step of the way. Perhaps I have become opti-pessimistic [3] with age.

So along that line I think the question should be broadened to include all material, not just plastic alone. If I buy a 150lb AGM battery and 200lbs of solar panels that are now defective then perhaps the company should provide a list of drop-off locations I can bring them to instead of me having to take them to the dump and pay to drop off hazardous material. I believe it should be on the manufactuer to figure out what can be recycled and get a tax cut based on the percentage of materials they can prove they have properly recycled. Maybe we should even get a rebate for some of the materials just like what is done with metals today.

[1] - https://polychem-usa.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/SPI-Resi...

[2] - https://plasticactioncentre.ca/directory/plastic-by-the-numb...

[3] - Obscure reference to LOIS BBS

> We need to increase the title length for posts on HN... (or a drop for context instead of wasting 8+ chars on the "Ask HN:" section of the title

The maximum title length can also hint posters to write better. For example, “Do you think “ IMO adds 13 characters needlessly. “Should co’s be req’d to…” says the same and IMO reads better, too.

Removing passive voice and replacing words by shorter synonyms, I get “Ask HN: Should we force companies to take back their e-waste?”. If I count correctly, that leaves 19 characters to spare. Replace “companies” by “shops” and it would be 23.

As to the subject at hand: it will be as good as impossible for shops to verify that people don’t dump stuff bought elsewhere there, so shops that can be reached more conveniently will get more than their share of stuff.

Also, how do you suggest people return e-waste to online retailers?

An eLectronic waste recycling fee (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_Waste_Recycling_Fee) combined with specialized recycling centers may be a better option.

Yes, it's about time for this. Why should corporations externalize their costs of business like this. Let's put regulations in place so that prices are set properly.