When you are ready to replace your home computer with a newer model, you may be faced with the dilemma of what to do with the old one—sell it or trash it. But there is a better alternative if you know you will not be able to sell it. Currently, only about one in ten computers are recycled, as most people do not know what to do with theirs.
With 63 million personal computers becoming obsolete each year in the U.S., millions of discarded computers wind up in landfills and release harmful toxins into the environment such as cadmium, mercury, lead, and chromium. These are perfectly usable machines that could benefit a school or non-profit organization instead of being added to landfills. Many states already have banned dumping electronic waste and require that it is properly disposed of.
How to Recycle Responsibly
Electronic waste (or “e-waste”) is considered the world's most toxic and fastest-growing waste, with only 10% of it being recycled and the rest collecting dust in owners' homes, shipped to third world countries, crowding landfills, or burned in incinerators. The problem can be stopped, or at least minimized greatly, if people would take action to recycle responsibly.
Continued...
By Margie Monin
