Materials Selection

ELC members have corporate sustainability programs that proactively look at product design. Our companies have a long history of developing and incorporating environmentally preferential alternatives into their products. In fact, many of our members have design-for-environment or product stewardship programs that pre-date the European Union's Directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (the RoHS Directive) by several years.

The ELC believes it is essential to consider the science related to electronics products as part of any public policy discussion regarding product design and recycling. Compounds such as lead and mercury are present in some electronics products because they provide unique safety, performance and energy efficiency benefits. As our industry and others have developed viable substitutes, manufacturers have successfully incorporated them into our products.

It is important to recognize that these compounds cannot yet be replaced in all applications, and that any alternatives must meet equivalent environmental, safety, health and performance specifications.

The ELC leads industry engagement on product design issues, such as material restriction laws and design mandates. Our policy is to develop laws and regulations based on sound scientific assessments of the properties of substances, the risks of relevant exposures and the environmental and long-term performance characteristics of potential substitutes. Additionally, the ELC looks to promote market-based incentives for green design and foster programs that reward environmentally-preferable design initiatives. In addition, the ELC strives for coordination among jurisdictions so as to not create conflicting design mandates and to minimize the administrative and compliance impact on manufacturers. The ELC is actively engaged in many state and local efforts to consider materials selection and design initiatives that may affect the electronics industry.