BACK TO SCHOOL and recycling electronics – two concepts with more in common than you may think.
The leaves have begun to change, the sun is setting earlier and the kids are back in school, which also means new electronic gear, such as laptops, monitors, cell phones and MP3 players – and a bunch of older, discarded electronics that are gathering dust.
Californians purchase more than 2 million computers each year and it estimated that more than 6 million old television and computer monitors are stockpiled in California homes because people don’t know what to do with them. Many of these items contain elements that become hazardous to our environment when they are dumped into landfills. It is illegal in California to dispose of electronic waste in the trash.
To help local residents handle their e-waste in an environmentally responsible manner, the county of Marin is hosting a Back-To-School E-Waste collection on Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Marin County Fairgrounds in San Rafael.
The county will work again with Electronic Recyclers, the largest e-waste recycler in California and its partner for the successful e-waste collection event held on Earth Day in April. Electronic Recyclers specializes in the environmentally safe and socially responsible dismantling of used electronics. They utilize the most advanced technology in the state to recycle old electronics and provide Certificates of Assured Destruction, assuring clients that their e-waste is 100 percent recycled and done so ethically and lawfully.
The event will provide residents with an easy “one-stop” way to drop off and recycle their e-waste. Items that will be accepted for recycling include LCD, flatscreen, plasma or any type of televisions and monitors, laptops, computer towers, printers, PDAs, DVD players, copy machines, fax machines, calculators, keyboards, stereo systems, speakers, computer mice, telephones, cell phones, microwave ovens and VCRs.
The event is sponsored by the county’s Department of Cultural and Visitor Services and Community Development Agency Sustainability Team, Independent Journal and Electronic Recyclers.
As we ramp up for school, let’s all do our part for the environment – and get those dusty old televisions and computers out of our garages.
Jim Farley is director of Cultural and Visitor Services for Marin County.
WHEN AND WHERE
The Back-To-School E-Waste collection will be from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Marin County Fairgrounds in San Rafael.For more information, go to www.marinsustainability.org.
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