Gadgets galore: Proper ways to recycle e-waste

Laurie Bryant has nicknamed herself “Inspector Gadget.”

“I’m ultra-focused on trying to do the right thing, and I know that you aren’t supposed to throw electronics in the garbage, but I still have just about every electronic dodad we ever bought,” said the LaGrange resident. “Only yesterday I tossed out two Palm Pilots.”

She admits she has lived in an electronic graveyard for years — game systems, VCRs, CPUs, netbooks and cellphones of every generation clog her garage.

“This spring, I just tossed out five printers,” she said. “I’m pretty sure we still have my husband’s sports score pager thing, too. If the environment is in trouble, it is definitely not the fault of the Bryants.”

Bryant is right. You’re not supposed to throw away electronics, but that hasn’t stopped Americans from tossing their TVs, computers, cellphones and other electronics in the trash. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, there were 1.87 million tons of tossed electronics in 2013.

“E-waste contains serious contaminants, such as lead, mercury, cadmium, manganese, arsenic, berylum, barium and chromium, and other toxic chemicals/compounds, such as phosphors,” said Jim Constantino, general counsel to Royal Carting Service Co. “We have to do better. Excessive heavy metal exposure can damage the cardiovascular, respiratory, nervous and excretory systems of the body, and cause developmental problems in children. Managing this waste stream/commodity and keeping it out of landfills, and out of our ground water is critical for the health and safety of all of our citizens.”

If Americans aren’t tossing their electronics improperly, they are, like Bryant, holding on to them for a variety of reasons.

“Folks tend to go out and purchase new gadgets and, unfortunately, very rarely do they get rid of old items when they get something new,” said Colleen Ashe, PMP,CPO Ashe Organizing Solutions Ltd. “They think they’ll hold on to it ‘just in case,’ pass it on to someone if it still works or they don’t know how to dispose of it properly.”

If your family is like the Bryants and you have more gadgets and gizmos in your house than you know what to do with, Ashe suggests rounding them up and sorting them into categories.

“If it’s useful and you can pass it along to someone else, there are lots of ways that you can do that,” said the Poughkeepsie-based organizer. “If it’s old or broken, you can also properly e-waste recycle. That doesn’t mean that you put it in your regular trash though.”

E-waste should never be mixed with regular trash, construction and demolition debris, or other single-stream recycling (such as bottles, plastics and paper).

“E-waste should be separated and disposed of at registered collection and/or consolidation sites,” Constantino said. “These include, for example, manufactures, retailers, various municipal locations and permitted transfer stations. These sites, which are regulated by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, must utilize licensed recyclers and file annual reports to account for all e-waste disposal.”

Companies such as Royal Carting recycles collected e-waste with Regional Computer Recycling & Recovery.

“Consumers or businesses can contact their hauler or their local municipality for more information,” he said.

But not everything needs to be recycled.

“E-waste may be a bit of a misnomer since there are a significant amount of resources recoverable from this particular waste stream,” Constantino said. “For example, cellphones contain precious/rare metals, such as gold, silver, copper and palladium. For that and other reasons, there are commentators who prefer to consider this material as a ‘commodity’ and consider e-waste to be only the residual waste to be disposed of after the recovery/recycling process.”

Sell

Want to make some money with your old devices? Go to online sites, such as gazelle.com and usell.com to try and make a few bucks.

Donate

Another option for getting rid of your e-waste is to donate it to a good cause.

“Your local Goodwill will take electronics, but they do not give a tax receipt because you’re recycling it,” Ashe said. “For working electronics, ReStore in Newburgh is open to accepting electronics, but similar to Goodwill, they have guidelines about age of the piece. They also accept cable connections, extra pieces, wire and things that come with electronics, and could help in the work they do for Habitat for Humanity.”

Give them away

Ashe also suggests listing your items on Freecycle.org and just giving it away.

“It’s an online community-based recycling program and all you do it tell them what you have, and that it’s free to anyone who wants to come and pick it up,” she said.

On Aug. 1, the Dutchess County Resource Recovery Agency (http://www.dcrra.org/) is hosting a recycling event where you can dispose of your unwanted electronic waste — including computers, laptops, keyboards and cellphones — and for a registration fee of $15, you can take advantage of a one-drop stop. You must preregister.

“You can also drive up to the Route 82 Royal Carting and tell them what you have and, for a nominal fee, they’ll take it all off your hands and recycle it,” Ashe said. “It can add up, but the fact is that you get rid of it all at once.”

Gadgets are fun and make life easier, but Ashe said that once you eliminate the electronic clutter, you’ll be relieved.

“Get rid of not just the items, but the manuals, parts, chargers and other accessories that came with it,” Ashe said. “You’ll feel like a weight has been lifted from your chest and that you can sleep better at night.”

Based on the latest statistics from 2013, Americans might actually be doing a little better. The EPA reports 40 percent of electronics are being recycled compared to 25 percent in 2009.

On the Web

•Ashe Organizing Solutions Ltd.: www.Asheorganizing.com

•Dutchess County Resource Recovery Agency: http://www.dcrra.org/

•ReStore: http://www.habitatnewburgh.org/restore

•Royal Carting: www.royalcarting.com/