How does Corporate America get rid of their surplus PCs?
Environmentalists and public officials are beginning to see that they need some unified plan and that allowing people to toss PCs and peripherals in with their trash is not a good idea.
The “Environmental Protection Agency estimates that people threw away 2.5 millions tons of electronic equipment, know as e-waste, last year”. A “computer monitor contains about 4 pounds of lead, and other parts are filled with heavy metals like mercury, arsenic, cadmium and chromium”.
While not all e-waste recyclers are reputable many of the major manufacturers have programs of free or low cost recycling. “Hewlett-Packard, I.B.M., Dell, Sharp, Panasonic and Sony, among others, all advertise free programs on their Web sites. Some will arrange for pickups or pay shipping costs”.
Among the issues are that “most people are unaware of the programs. And those who make themselves aware are not the problem, anyway” referring to people who toss e-waste out with the rest of their trash.