It’s pretty likely that almost everyone reading this article has some sort of electronic device, from computers to cell phones to video gaming systems.† You think a lot about your given technology when its of use to you, but what happens to your iPhone 3GS when you get that shiny new iPhone 4.
Here are some useful tips for disposing of your electronics, courtesy of the EPA.
By visiting the EPA’s webpage, http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/materials/ecycling/faq.htm#donate, you can find a list of local facilities where you can donate your device if its still working or recycle it.
For cell phones there are three different options.† You can reuse the wireless devices if they are in good working condition or they can be disassembled and the parts reused.† Devices can also be refurbished through reconditioning or repairment.† Lastly, recycling is the option when the wireless device has reached the end of its life.† When undergoing the recycling process cell phones are sent to processing facilities, which recover and recycle reusable materials.
Some of the benefits of recycling your electronics are as follows:
Recycling one million laptops saves the energy equivalent to the electricity used by 3,657 U.S. homes in a year.
One metric ton of circuit boards can contain 400 to 800 times the concentrations of gold ore mined in the U.S. and 30 to 40 times the concentration of copper ore mined in the U.S.
For every million cell phones we recycle, we can recover 35, 274 pounds of copper, 772 pounds of silver, 75 pounds of gold and 33 pounds of palladium.† In recovering the metals we can reduce the extraction of raw metals.