Right to repair in Illinois is the practical choice

Ask yourself: If the screen breaks on the phone or computer that you are using to read this article, will you be able to get it fixed? Do you have a repair shop around the corner? Do they have the tools and information needed to extend the life of your device?

Too often, the answer to these questions is no. Barriers to repair are creating an e-waste problem that is harming our planet.

To make electronics, companies mine the earth for rare minerals, burn fossil fuels and consume hundreds of pounds of water. We then throw the devices away just a few short years later. Our discarded electronics often end up in landfills, where they leach harmful toxins from their circuit boards and plastics. Illinois households produce 40,000 tons of electronic waste per year, which adds toxic heavy metals like lead, mercury, and cadmium into state landfills. Even responsible recycling of our electronics destroys some of the value that could be maintained if they were repaired and used longer.

Our relationship with tech doesn’t have to be this way. Repairing and reusing electronics is the best way to keep them out of landfills — and to maximize the energy and resources that went into making them in the first place.

Repair can also help consumers save money. Illinois PIRG research has found that repair could save Illinois families over $264 million each year. According to this analysis, repair could reduce household spending on electronics and appliances by 21.6 percent, which would save an average family approximately $382 per year.

Repair isn’t a new concept

When something breaks, you fix it. That’s just practical.

When my favorite coat loses a button, I pull out my needle and thread and sew it back on. When my trusty stand mixer broke, my dad and I took it apart to find the problem. And while our electronics can be more intimidating to fix than a missing button, having independent repair shops that have access to the tools and information that they need so that they can help fix our stuff allows us to repair instead of replace.

But many companies actively restrict independent repair. Doing so helps them sell more new products. By blocking access to replacement parts, specialty tools, schematics and diagnostic software, manufacturers of electronics are contributing to a throw-away culture. 

Right to Repair legislation can fix that. By requiring manufacturers to provide access to repair parts and tools on reasonable terms, Right to Repair can help us use our devices for longer. It’s time we have the right to fix the stuff we’ve bought and keep e-waste from polluting our planet.