SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
For Immediate Release
March, 01 2011, 09:41am EDT
Contact:
Neil Peters-Michaud, CEO Cascade Asset Mgt
Phone: (608) 316-6637
Email: nmichaud@cascade-assets.com
Lauren Roman, e-Stewards Business Director
Phone: (973) 224-7632
Email: LRoman@ban.org
California, Florida and Indiana e-waste Recycling Facilities Earn e-Stewards Certification
Cascade Asset Management offers coast-to-coast e-Stewards IT asset disposition solutions
MADISON, WI
The Basel Action Network (www.BAN.org), a global toxic trade watchdog organization, announced today that the Florida, Indiana and California technology equipment refurbishing and recycling centers of Cascade Asset Management (Cascade), are now e-Stewards Certified(r), and thus adhere to the world's highest standard for socially and environmentally responsible recycling. With this announcement, California and Florida now have their first e-Stewards Certified recycling option. Cascade's Wisconsin headquarters became e-Stewards Certified in 2010. Now all of Cascade's recycling facilities are e-Stewards Certified.
Cascade's four processing centers provide a coast-to-coast solution to institutions and enterprises looking for secure and responsible IT asset disposition. In the last two years, Cascade has been able to complete over 18,000 on-site pickups at locations across all fifty states. Since 1999, Cascade has handled over 62 million pounds of unwanted electronics for reuse and recycling.
"In the absence of leadership or laws requiring responsible electronics recycling here in the US, BAN created a program to help organizations and individuals find responsible electronics recyclers. Certified e-Stewards Recyclers have undergone a rigorous independent audit process to ensure they are not simply dumping this toxic waste on developing countries under the guise of recycling that sadly is the norm in this industry," said Jim Puckett, BAN's Executive Director. "As a Certified e-Stewards Recycler, Cascade Asset Management can now assure customers their obsolete electronics will be managed to the highest standards of responsibility."
The e-Stewards program is recognized by environmental organizations, government entities, and private enterprises as the gold standard for vetting electronics recyclers. The accredited, third-party audited certification program has not only been endorsed by Greenpeace USA, the Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the Electronics TakeBack Coalition and 68 other environmental organizations, but has also drawn the support of major corporate "e-Stewards Enterprises" such as Wells Fargo, Samsung, Capitol One, and Bank of America.
"e-Stewards Certification validates Cascade's ongoing commitment to responsible processing of IT assets," said Neil Peters-Michaud, CEO and founder of Cascade. "It's a rigorous standard that evaluates all our operations, systems, and downstream management to demonstrate conformance to the highest standard for responsibility in the industry."
###
About Cascade
Cascade Asset Management has provided full service IT asset retirement solutions since 1999 with four facilities throughout the United States. The company collects, receives and processes office electronics from enterprises and institutions across North America. For more information about Cascade, please visit www.cascade-assets.com or call (888) 222-8399.
About the Basel Action Network
The Basel Action Network (BAN) was founded in 1997 and named after the Basel Convention, the United Nations treaty that restricts trade in hazardous wastes and was intended to stop the dumping of toxic waste on developing nations. In the last decade, BAN has exposed the toxic trade issue to the world via investigations, reports and documentary films on two of the largest illegal hazardous waste streams traded internationally today: electronic waste and toxic ships destined for 'recycling' in developing countries. Today, BAN is not only the leading global source of information and advocacy on toxic trade and international hazardous waste treaties, but it has also developed market-based solutions that rely on the highest standards for globally responsible recycling and rigorous independent certification to those standards. For more information on BAN and the e-Stewards program, visit www.e-stewards.org.
Basel Action Network's mission is to champion global environmental health and justice by ending toxic trade, catalyzing a toxics-free future, and campaigning for everyone's right to a clean environment.
LATEST NEWS
'Netanyahu Is Sabotaging Diplomacy': Israeli Attack Kills Top Iranian Nuclear Negotiator
"This action ordered by Prime Minister Netanyahu appears to deliberately undermine ongoing American diplomatic negotiations about Iran's nuclear program," said one Democratic senator.
Jun 13, 2025
Israel's large-scale military attack on Iran early Friday targeted and killed an official who was leading a committee on nuclear talks with the United States, a decision that observers and Iranian officials said was clearly designed to undercut progress toward a diplomatic agreement.
Ali Shamkhani, whose home was among those attacked by Israel on Friday, was a top aide to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and had expressed optimism in recent weeks about the prospect of improved relations with the U.S. as President Donald Trump signaled he was open to a deal.
"If the Americans act as they say, for sure we can have better relations," Shamkhani toldNBC News last month. "It can lead to a better situation in the near future."
The next round of nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran was scheduled for Sunday. One unnamed Trump administration official said that "we still intend to have talks Sunday," but Friday's attacks left the status of the already-tenuous negotiations in serious doubt, as Iran responded to Israel's assault with a barrage of drones and warnings of additional retaliation.
Trump, in a social media response to the unfolding disaster, did not sound a diplomatic note, accusing Iran of missing "chance after chance to make a deal" and threatening that the situation "will only get worse."
"Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left," added the president, who during his first White House term withdrew the U.S. from a previous nuclear agreement with Iran.
"Trump must oppose Netanyahu's escalation and pursue a diplomatic path to deal with Iran's nuclear program."
The Trump administration claimed the U.S. was not directly involved in Friday's attacks, but Israel notified Washington in advance. Israel is heavily dependent on U.S. arms, and observers said it was inconceivable that the attack went forward without at least tacit approval from the Trump administration.
New York Times journalist Farnaz Fassihi reported that Iranian officials viewed the assassination of Shamkhani as "Israel targeting and killing nuclear diplomacy with the U.S."
Others, including foreign policy analysts and Democratic lawmakers in the U.S., echoed that assessment.
"This action ordered by Prime Minister Netanyahu appears to deliberately undermine ongoing American diplomatic negotiations about Iran's nuclear program, with the latest talks scheduled for this weekend," said U.S. Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) in a statement. "Conflict should always be a last resort, especially when diplomacy is ongoing."
The biggest recipient of U.S. foreign aid appears to be starting a war with Iran, inevitably putting American targets in the region in harm’s way, undermining American diplomats and threatening our own security.
Our tax dollars at work.
— Eli Clifton (@EliClifton) June 13, 2025
Dylan Williams, vice president for government affairs at the Center for International Policy, observed that "the overwhelming consensus among Democratic lawmakers commenting on Israeli attacks on Iran tonight is that Netanyahu is sabotaging diplomacy and recklessly risking a war."
"The next step should be to make clear: No U.S. help, no U.S. forces, and no U.S. taxpayer funding for Bibi's war," Williams wrote.
The chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), warned Trump that he "must not violate the Constitution by involving American troops in Netanyahu's war without coming to Congress."
"Netanyahu's reckless strike risks provoking a wider war and pulling in the United States," said Casar. "Trump must oppose Netanyahu's escalation and pursue a diplomatic path to deal with Iran's nuclear program."
Keep ReadingShow Less
US Progressives Say Stop Supporting 'Rogue Genocidal Regime' After Israel's Unprovoked Attack on Iran
"Trump must act immediately to suspend all military support to Israel and stop allowing U.S. arms to fuel war crimes, mass civilian death, and regional collapse," said one critic.
Jun 13, 2025
Progressive U.S. lawmakers and human rights defenders demanded an end to unconditional American armed and diplomatic support for Israel after it launched a series of attacks on Iran early Friday, reportedly killing senior military officials and civilians including nuclear scientists, women, and children in a dramatic escalation that Iranian leaders vowed to avenge.
Israeli forces carried out at least five waves of airstrikes targeting not only Iran's nuclear facilities but also its military leadership and capabilities, Al Jazeerareported. In addition to airstrikes, Israeli and international media reported that operatives from Mossad, Israel's foreign spy agency, also conducted assassination and sabotage attacks in Iran.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed that Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Commander-in-Chief Major Gen. Hossein Salami and Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major Gen. Mohammad Bagheri were assassinated, as were numerous Iranian nuclear scientists.
IDF attacks targeted cities including the capital Tehran, Natanz, Isfahan, Arak, Tabriz, and Kermanshah. Iranian television reports showed bombed-out apartment towers and said that an unknown number of civilians including women and children were killed in the strikes.
The attack on Natanz—home to Iran's primary nuclear enrichment facility—sparked fears of radiological contamination.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the attack—dubbed Operation Rising Lion—a "preemptive strike," a dubious form of warfare previously waged by forces including imperial Japan during the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the George W. Bush administration in Iraq.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog said the attacks were meant to "neutralize an immediate and existential threat to our people," an apparent reference to Iran's nuclear program. Successive U.S. administrations including President Donald Trump's have concluded for decades that Iran is not trying to develop nuclear weapons.
During his first term, Trump unilaterally abrogated the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, also known as the Iran nuclear deal.
Last year, Israel and Iran carried out limited tit-for-tat attacks following the former's assassination of Hassan Nasrallah, who led the Lebanon-based resistance group Hezbollah, and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
This time, Iranian leaders vowed "severe punishment," with fears that the U.S. could be targeted due to its staunch support for Israel as it wages what the international community increasingly views as a genocidal war on Gaza. While U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed that his country was not involved in the attacks, Israeli officials insisted there was close coordination with the Trump administration.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said Friday that "in the early hours of today, the Zionist regime extended its filthy and bloodstained hand to commit a crime in our beloved country, exposing its vile nature more than ever by targeting residential areas."
"With this crime, the Zionist regime has prepared a bitter and painful fate for itself—and it will undoubtedly face it," Khamenei added.
As the world braced for Iran's response to the attacks, U.S. progressives called for a diplomatic solution and an end to American support for Israel.
"The Israeli government bombing Iran is a dangerous escalation that could lead to regional war," Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) said on social media.
Tlaib asserted that Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza and is facing a domestic criminal corruption trial, "will do anything to maintain his grip on power."
"We cannot let him drag our country into a war with Iran," she added. "Our government must stop funding and supporting this rogue genocidal regime."
Referring to negotiations on a new Iran nuclear deal, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said: "Just as talks with Iran were set to resume, Netanyahu launches a strike and declares a state of emergency. He is provoking a war Americans don't want."
"We should not allow ourselves to be dragged into yet another conflict, against our will, by a foreign leader pursuing his own agenda of death and destruction," Omar added.
The U.S.-based peace group CodePink—some of whose members held an emergency protest outside the White House in Washington, D.C.—said that it "strongly condemn[s] Israel's unprovoked and reckless attack on Iran, which risks igniting a catastrophic regional war."
"This dangerous escalation threatens millions of lives across the entire Middle East," the group added. "The U.S. must not continue to support and enable this illegal act of aggression."
CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin said: "It's horrific that Israel is bombing yet another country. And Trump calls himself a peace president? He knew this was coming and stood by. This is entirely out of step with the will of the American people."
"The whole world is desperate for peace in the Middle East, and instead, Israel decides to move the region closer to World War III," Benjamin added.
Noting that nuclear talks with Iran were set to resume this weekend, the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) said that "this is an attack on peace and diplomacy."
"Israeli political officials have demonstrated that U.S. diplomacy and a peaceful resolution with Iran is what they consider to be the true threats," NIAC asserted.
"This much is clear: This is a war of choice, and an illegal and unprovoked attack," NIAC added. "Trump must weigh in to stop this conflict before it spirals out of control, and to preserve the chance of maintaining diplomatic offramps."
Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man, Israel-Palestine director at the advocacy group Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), contended that "Israel deciding to launch a war against Iran at the very same time it faces unprecedented international isolation and pressure over its genocide in Gaza is a nightmarish outcome of impunity."
DAWN executive director Sarah Leah Whitson said that "Israel has committed an unlawful, unprovoked attack on Iran to undermine the growing global efforts to sanction it for its illegal occupation and to disrupt Trump's efforts to independently pursue America’s interests via diplomacy."
Nihad Awad, national executive director at the Council on American Islamic Relations, issued the following statement:
We condemn Israel's offensive strike on Iran and the broader pattern of aggression it represents. Netanyahu is using American weapons and taxpayer dollars to launch illegal and destabilizing wars across the region. President Trump must act immediately to suspend all military support to Israel and stop allowing U.S. arms to fuel war crimes, mass civilian death, and regional collapse. Secretary Rubio's statement confirms what we already knew—Israel is acting recklessly, and the U.S. is letting it happen.
CodePink noted that "in the past month and a half alone, Israel has bombed Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Iran."
"There is no other choice," the group added, "ARMS EMBARGO NOW!"
Keep ReadingShow Less
'Horrifying Moment in Our Nation's History': Fellow Senators Denounce 'Assault' on Padilla
"Senator Padilla is a respected leader of great dignity and he has every right to ask a question of Secretary Noem without being slammed down and handcuffed," said one Democratic senator.
Jun 12, 2025
Fellow U.S. senators reacted with fury and condemnation to footage of Democratic California Sen. Alex Padilla being handcuffed on the ground after being forcibly removed from a news conference that was held by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in Los Angeles on Thursday.
In a video of the episode, Padilla can be heard saying "I'm Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary," as federal agents push him out of the room. Outside the room, agents forced Padilla to the ground and then handcuffed him.
"I'm on my way to the Senate floor to talk about the assault on my colleague, Senator Alex Padilla," wrote Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) X on Thursday. "This is a horrifying moment in our nation's history."
"What's next, brown shirts?" wrote Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I), who was likely referring to the "brownshirts," a name for the paramilitary group that aided the rise of Adolf Hitler. Whitehouse added: "What do Republican colleagues have to say? At long last, colleagues, have you no sense of decency?"
"This is insane. A United States Senator was just violently thrown to the ground and handcuffed while trying to question the administration. We need a countrywide response to this all out authoritarianism. This cannot stand," Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) wrote on X.
"Sickening," said Sen. Mazi Hirono (D-Hawaii). "This is what authoritarians do. None of us is safe from this regime.
Speaking to press later on Thursday, Padilla said he was not arrested or detained. Padilla said he was waiting to be briefed by federal officials when he learned that Noem was giving a press conference in the same building.
"Over the course of recent weeks, I [and] several of my colleagues have been asking the Department of Homeland Security for more information and more answers on their increasingly extreme immigration enforcement actions, and we've gotten little to no information in response to our inquiries. And so I came to the press conference to hear what she had to say, to see if I could learn any new additional information," he said.
"I will say this," Padilla added. "If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question, if this is how the Department of Homeland Security responds to a senator with a question, you can only imagine what they're doing to farm workers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country."
The Department of Homeland Security released a statement along with a video of the episode accusing Padilla of "disrespectful political theatre."
Outside watchdogs like the Not Above the Law Coalition, which consists of over 150 organizers, think tanks, and nonprofit advocacy groups, also condemned the incident and called on every U.S. lawmaker, regardless of party affiliation, to do the same.
"The images of federal agents tackling and handcuffing Senator Alex Padilla should send chills down every American’s spine," the coalition said in a statement. "It is shocking enough to see someone manhandled for exercising their First Amendment right to free speech. That it happened to a sitting U.S. Senator attending a public DHS press briefing in his home state is outrageous and un-American."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular