Environmental Stewardship

Saving Our Environment and Saving Lives

Many people simply dispose of their old computer equipment when it breaks or gets too old for them to reasonably use, not knowing the grave dangers attached to the improper disposal of things like monitors and other accessories. Much of this waste is simply shipped overseas, dumped in landfills where impoverished children and community members pillage to harvest gold and other precious components from what's dumped. These sites become toxic soup, and the source of rampant disease and illness from things like mercury poisoning and the release of acids and other dangerous elements hidden within.

It's important to be mindful of how we discard things that are no longer of use, and to consider alternatives to throwing them out at all.

Many cities, Windsor included, have developed computer disposals and recycling programs at local dump and other municipal depots, allowing for the safe disposal of equipment. Get in touch with your community's waste management facility to find out if they are participating in the safe disposal programs and committed to ensuring electronics waste is properly processed nationally, and not shipped overseas where it literally kills.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recover

Many stationery and electronics stores offer printer cartridge recycling programs that give you money back when you turn your empties in. Rather than discarding them and adding to the ever-growing mountain of consumer waste, they clean and refill them, offering them for resale as generic cartridges. Local schools can often tap into these programs, serving as a community drop-off point, turning them in to recoup the cost of their own supplies. If you have children in school, ask them if there is a program in place for the recycling of cartridges. If not, check in with your local stationery or electronics store to see if they offer a drop-off and recycling program directly. Click the next tabs for drop-off locations for computers, batteries and cellphones.

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