A trio of Senators called on the Commerce Department to implement a common charging port for U.S. smartphones. Failure to do so causes consumers economic harm and also hurts the environment, they say.
In a letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, Democratic Senators Elizabeth Warren, Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont asserted the “planned obsolescence” of charging accessories is “expensive and frustrating” for buyers and drives the “proliferation of e-waste.” Their call comes just after the European Union’s passage of a law requiring electronics manufacturers to adopt USB-C charging ports as standard equipment for small- and medium-sized electronics sold in the EU by 2024.
By 2024, European consumers will be able to use a single charger to power smartphones, tablets, portable speakers and e-readers. The Senators aren’t calling for a law, but asking the department to develop a “comprehensive strategy to address unnecessary consumer costs and mitigate e-waste.”
The Senators cite a study from the European Commission that reports on average, consumers own about three mobile chargers, but 38 percent of the time they can’t charge a device because they don’t have a compatible charger. Innovation should benefit the public, the Senators assert. “It should not come at their expense, saddle them with incompatible accessories, and compel them to purchase different charging equipment for each device they own.”
“In our increasingly digital society, consumers frequently must pay for new specialized charging equipment and accessories for their different devices,” write Warren, Markey and Sanders. “This is not merely an annoyance; it can be a financial burden.”
The EU’s decision alone claims to save 11,000 tons of e-waste annually. The lawmakers argue that implementing this strategy in the U.S. could do more. “When electronics are not disposed of properly, e-waste can spread toxins in water, pollute soil, and degrade the air we breathe. In 2019, humans generated a staggering 53.6 million metric tons of e-waste, and only 17 percent of this waste was recycled.”
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
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