May 2007

Interactive Media

It’s Not Easy Being Green

Suddenly, everyone’s talking about being green. This goes for computer equipment and electronics as well as water bottles and aluminum cans. The National Recycling Coalition cites computers as #10 on the list of items that should be recycled, particularly because, “between 1997 and 2007, nearly 500 million personal computers became obsolete.”

• The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition says that only 10% of unwanted and obsolete computers are recycled, and reminds consumers that each computer or television display:
• Contains an average of 4-8 pounds of lead
• Monitor glass contains 20% lead by weight
• Consumer electronics already constitute 40% of lead found in landfills
• Electronics left in landfills are routinely crushed, and the led is released into the environment
• About 70% of the heavy metals, including mercury and other substances found in electronics, can contaminate groundwater and pose environmental and public health risks
  

Here are some links that can help:

• For a small fee, Intercon solutions claims to be the solution to your e-waste problem. They’ve found “ways to disassemble and completely recycle all types of electronics and have added to these basic operating methods.” See the company’s site at http://www.interconrecycling.com.
• The National Recycling Coalition sponsors a Myspace page,“Recycle Mania Tournament” that speaks directly to college students, offering them links and scholarships and educating them on the need to recycle via campus wide contests and You Tube videos.
  

 

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