Serious health risks uncovered at AZ’s largest TV recycler

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The recent DTV switch from an analog to a digital signal has caused a lot of people to get rid of their old TVs.  

While many of those old TVs are ending up in landfills, there is a push to recycle them because of the toxic materials contained inside. 
 
E-Waste Harvesters in Phoenix takes in old TVs.  Owner Earl Campbell said he has outgrown his warehouse because of all the TVs being recycled. 
 
“I’m seeing a 50 percent increase,” said Campbell. 
 
Campbell said in order to recycle a TV its parts must be disassembled. 
 
First, workers have to tear out the wood and plastic.  Then they separate the copper and glass, which is sold to recyclers. 
 
Campbell said the glass inside the TV is what is most concerning. 
 
The glass tube inside a TV is known as a cathode ray tube, or CRT.  
 
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, CRTs contain toxins such as cadmium, which is linked to kidney and lung issues, barium, known to cause brain and lung problems, and most importantly, lead. 

CRTs contain four to eight pounds of lead.  The EPA says in order to recycle CRTs, the glass must be properly washed and stored because lead is so toxic. 
 
However, that critical process of properly washing and storing CRTs is not happening at Arizona’s largest glass recycler, the Dlubak Glass Company. 
 
Benjamin Grumbles is the newly appointed director of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality.  He said ADEQ has serious concerns about Dlubak’s operations. 
 
“They have not done a good job and they need to clean up their act,” Grumbles told ABC15. 
 
The Dlubak Glass Company has six locations in the U.S. 
 
One of its largest facilities is located near Yuma, AZ.  
 
Dlubak’s Yuma plant is hard to miss because of the large mountain of shiny broken glass that sits uncovered on the property.  

In April of 2009, ADEQ took three soil samples from the Dlubak facility and the surrounding area. 
 
ADEQ found lead contamination on the floor of the facility and in the soil nearby. 
 
While the EPA’s regulatory limit for lead is five milligram/liter, lab results revealed a floor sample contained 280 milligram/liter of lead.
 
A soil sample taken near Dlubak’s CRT processing building contained 340 milligram/liter of lead. 
 
The highest level of lead contamination came from a soil sample taken on the property’s fence line located right next to a fruit orchard. 

It contained 380 milligram/liter of lead, that’s 76 times higher than the EPA’s regulatory limit. 

“I think it’s significant,” said Grumbles.  “And it justifies the steps we’ve taken recently.”
 
Grumbles said he believes any level of lead contamination is unacceptable. 
 
An even bigger concern is where the Dlubak plant is located.  It’s surrounded by agriculture; just feet away from produce trees. 
 
Lemon groves and large fields of produce surround the Dlubak’s facility in Yuma.   
 
ADEQ pictures, taken during its 2009 inspection, show the highest level of lead contamination was found next to lemon trees.  

“Could that be affecting the fruit and people who consume it?” Asked ABC15. 
 
“The short answer is yes,” Grumbles said.  “We are concerned and focused on that precise question right now.”  

The risk of potential further lead contamination concerns Grumbles.
 
“It could leach into ground water and water supplies,” he said.  “There's also a risk of airborne contamination.”
 
Dlubak leases its land from a business called CAPT LLC. 
 
Scott Anderson with CAPT LLC told ABC15 that it also leases 400 acres around the plant to produce growers and distributors.  Anderson could not tell us where the produce ends up.
 
Grumbles said ADEQ is forcing Dlubak to change its cleaning and storing procedures and to excavate contaminated soil. 
 
The ABC15 Investigators found out that ADEQ has known about problems at the Dlubak Glass Company since 2003 when inspectors found similar issues.  
 
According to a 2003 Notice of Violation, ADEQ inspectors found “several broken monitors” and “many small pieces of broken glass were found on the soil, offsite” and “adjacent to the facility”. 
 
In 2003, inspectors also found one broken monitor that had landed outside the facility’s fence “where it broke onto the soil under a lemon tree”. 
 
ADEQ said that Dlubak did eventually reach compliance. 
 
However, records show that ADEQ did not go back to inspect the facility until five years later in 2008.  

“Did the office do enough?” Asked ABC15. 
 
“In retrospect, we could have done more,” Grumbles said. 
 
ABC15 took our findings to Arizona State Representative Chad Campbell. 
 
“I think that is troubling,” said Campbell. 
 
Campbell said his attempts at introducing TV recycling laws have gone nowhere. 
 
“If we’re going to allow these types of materials in Arizona, they have to be enclosed and monitored,” Campbell said.  “That’s a no-brainer.”
 
Campbell has vowed to work on a new bill to address the potential problems with TV recycling. 
 
Calls to the Dlubak Glass Company for comment were not returned. 
 
ADEQ said there is no known public contamination yet.  The department is continuing to test the area. 
 
If you’re concerned, contact your local legislator to let them know how you feel.