Environment, Organics, Fair Trade & Recycling at Big Green Purse: Eco-Geek

Tired of how inconvenient it can be to recycle your cell phone, laptop, MP3 player or PDA? A new ECycling Leadership Initiative will make it easier for you to find more than 5,000 recycling locations around the country so you can keep your e-waste out of the trash.

Consumer electronics industry leaders have launched this first-ever industry-wide electronics recycling initiative with an ambitious goal: To recycle one billion pounds of electronics annually by 2016, which would be a more than threefold increase over 2010. One billion pounds of electronics, if not properly recycled, would completely fill the equivalent of a 71,000-seat NFL stadium. (The picture to the left shows a mountain of electronic keyboards in need of recycling.)

E-waste is the fastest growing element of the waste stream, so recycling it rather than throwing it away must be done. Electronic equipment contains many heavy metals that are better captured than left to get loose in landfills or trash heaps, where they can contaminate groundwater and soil. Plus, given how much energy, water and other resources it takes to make a computer or a phone, it's much more environmentally friendly to recapture and reuse those materials than tp throw them away.

"The billion pound challenge is about both the quality and quantity of electronics recycling,” said Walter Alcorn, CEA’s vice president of environmental affairs and industry sustainability, in a company press release. “But we won’t stop at a billion pounds. The eCycling Leadership initiative is an ongoing, permanent initiative that will ... prohibit the use of recyclers and downstream processors who dump end-of-life electronics in developing nations.”

To that end, CEA supports certifying third-party recyclers to verify that the electronics are, in fact, being recycled rather than trashed when they're out of sight. In the future, look for new mobile apps to help make recycling used electronics as easy as buying new ones. The eCycling Leadership Initiative will also bolster the number of collection sites by working with state and local governments and charities to make more ecycling sites available.

NO NEED TO WAIT! GET STARTED NOW

Best Buy - I regularly recycle my electronics at Best Buy. Here's their policy: "We'll take just about anything electronic, including TVs, DVD players, computer monitors, cell phones and more. You can bring in up to two items a day, per household, and most things are absolutely free. However, there is a $10 charge for TVs 32" and under, CRTs, monitors and laptops — but we'll give you a $10 Best Buy gift card to offset that cost." Along with an in-store drop off program and kiosks, Best Buy also offers a TV haul-away service when a new product is delivered, and a Tech Trade-In program compensating consumers with gift cards for valuable products. In early 2011, Best Buy stores nationwide collected nearly 400 pounds each minute for recycling.

Goodwill - Businesses and consumers can donate computers to Goodwill for recycling. Check with your local Goodwill office before dropping equipment off.

EBay.com, CraigsList.com, and FreeCycle.org - These sites also enable you to sell, trade or donate your computer rather than toss it in the trash.

Earth911.com enables you to find more local computer recycling locations. Just go to their website, plug in your zip code, and you'll find electronics recyclers nearest your home or office.

WHAT ARE COMPANIES ALREADY DOING?

Apple
All e-waste collected by Apple programs worldwide is processed in the region where it was collected. The company says nothing is shipped overseas for recycling or disposal. Apple has instituted recycling programs in cities and college campuses in 95 percent of the countries where its products are sold, diverting more than 130.2 million pounds of equipment from landfills since 1994. Apple also takes back Apple computers, iPods, iPads and iPhones at no charge.

Dell
A partnership between Dell and Goodwill Industries International lets consumers drop off any used computers for no-cost recycling, whether they're Dell brand or not. Donated equipment meeting Reconnect’s criteria are resold, and devices needing repair are either refurbished or broken down into parts to be recycled by Dell partners. The program supports Goodwill’s job training programs, employment placement services and other community-based programs for people who have disabilities, lack education or job experience, or face other challenges to finding employment.

HP
HP currently operates recycling services in 56 countries or territories worldwide. In the United States they launched a buyback program in January 2009 that includes free recycling if an HP- or Compaq-branded system has no value for consumers. HP recycled more than 200 million pounds of hardware globally in 2009, resulting in an estimated 210,000 tons of avoided carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions. Since 1987, HP has recovered over 2 billion pounds of electronic product (for recovery and recycling) and HP print cartridges (for recycling).

LG
LG’s recycling program lets consumers drop off unwanted electronics at a Waste Management designated eCycling Center, or other alternative methods may be available. LG has recycled more than 7 million pounds since 2009, of which 3.3 million pounds were through LG’s voluntary program.

Nintendo of America
Because video game systems and games retain their value for many years beyond their retail lifecycle, Nintendo of America offers a number of customer support options to maximize their continued use, while also offering a free courtesy Take-Back Program to minimize the waste disposal of its products. The Take-Back Program provides for recycling of Nintendo hardware, software, accessories, and rechargeable batteries.

Panasonic, Sharp and Toshiba (Electronic Manufacturers Recycling Management Company, LLC)
Among other things, the Electronic Manufacturers Recycling Management Company, LLC (MRM) operates a voluntary nationwide collection and recycling service for brands produced by Panasonic, Sharp, Toshiba, Mitsubishi and Vizio. Since October 2007 MRM has established 840 collection sites across the U.S. and recycled more than 78 million pounds of electronics.

Samsung
Launched in the fall of 2008, Samsung Recycling Direct[SM] offers drop off locations in all 50 states. Samsung holds its recyclers accountable for environmentally responsible recycling, including no landfill, incineration, or export to developing countries of hazardous electronic wastes as commonly defined. Last year, in 2010, Samsung recycled over 50 million pounds of e-waste across the U.S., most of which was done voluntarily.

Sony
The Sony Take Back Recycling Program was the first national recycling initiative to involve both a major electronics manufacturer and a national waste management company. Since its inception in 2007, Sony has established a goal of collecting a pound of electronics for every pound it produces. To date Sony has collected and recycled more than 43 million pounds of electronics.

The eCycling Leadership Initiative is a collaboration among consumer electronics manufacturers, retailers, collectors, recyclers, non-governmental organizations and governments at all levels, and is coordinated by the Consumer Electronics Association.

You can find more information on the eCycling Leadership Initiative here.

Bruce Hathaway, an editor at Smithsonian magazine and eco-tech guru par excellence, wrote this guest post on cool home energy saving gadgets for Father's Day or any day (NOTE: add shipping & handling to all quoted prices). Thanks, Bruce!

Bogo (Buy One Give One) Solar Flashlight This well-made orange (or pink) light throws a nice even beam over a wide area, so it's better than most flashlights as a reading or task light. And if you buy one for $25, the SunNight Solar company will donate the same flashlight to someone in need. You even get to choose from a long list of charitable organizations and countries. Notes the SunNight Solar Web site, "Two billion people living in the developing world rely on kerosene lanterns, candles and single-use battery flashlights for light at night. [These] options are expensive, dangerous and harmful to the environment.” The Bogo light helps solve the problem. A new improved solar flashlight called the Super Bogo is also available, for $30.

Freeplay Summit handcrank/solar-powered radio I listen to the radio a lot, sometimes all day. Listening through our stereo system uses about 60 watts an hour, quite a bit of power. This little radio has terrific FM reception and excellent sound quality. And you'll get excellent upper-body exercise crank-charging it, especially if you hold it above your head when you crank. It takes about 45 minutes to achieve a full charge. I crank my radio while on my exercise bike and even carry one along and crank it while walking; it boosts my pulse rate by 15 beats a minute, often just enough to get up into all-important aerobic levels. This radio also has a solar panel on top so you can charge it in the kitchen window. Freeplay sells several radios; in my experience, the Summit offers the best reception and sound. $79.00, or $64.75 at Batteryjunction. By purchasing Freeplay products you’ll be supporting the Freeplay Foundation, which distributes radios and other hand crank devices to people in need in developing countries. Freeplay is also the company that developed the hand-crank power supply for the One Laptop Per Child program.

GSI Vortex hand-crank Blender Agent 007 would no doubt agree that a martini--or a magarita--made in an off-grid, hand-crank blender tastes a lot better than one made in an on-grid electric blender. And being out of breath from the cranking will heighten the booze buzz. The GSI Vortex Blender does the job, and again you'll benefit from good upper-body exercise turning the crank. It is noisy, though not much noisier than many electric blenders. You can buy the GSI Vortex for $79.95 at rei.com, or $59.95 plus at rvtoyoutlet.com.

Caframo 797 battery-powered Compact Desk Fan Ultra quiet, variable-speed, this fan runs on four D cell batteries. $28.50 at Wholesale Tool. I bought a half dozen of them for various places around the house; the nice breezes allow us to turn off the energy-hog AC when we don't really need it.

Rechargeable Battery Charger The off-grid way to use these fans is with rechargeable batteries, charged in a solar charger. My favorite solar charger is the Universal Solar Battery Charger, which charges multiple cells at once; it is waterproof and has a convenient carrying handle. $24.95. Several models of D-cell solar chargers are available, some with light meters and charts telling how long it will take the batteries to charge. See the options at batteryspace.com or Google "solar battery chargers." For rechargable batteries, go to batteryjunction.com and buy Tenergy D-cell 10,000 mAh Ni-MH rechargables; the more you buy, the better the price.

Kill-A-Watt Power Use Monitor You’ve likely heard of vampire power loss, the electricity that appliances like TVs, computers, plug-in blenders and fans, and remote controlled stereo receivers waste, even when you’ve turned them “off” with the remote. This little device will tell you how much that vampire is costing you as well as the planet. In our case, two TVs and a stereo receiver were draining away a total of about 75 watts a day, every day. My wife and I staked that vampire dead by putting the TVs and receiver on power-strips which we can manually turn off without losing station presets. Buy a Kill-A-Watt Monitor online for as little as $17.99.

Freeplay SherpaXrayLED Clear Body hand-crank flashlight In one respect, this is the geek-giddiest green gadget of all. The transparent case lets you see the crank gears, wires and generator circuit board in action. It also emits a nice even light, so it's good for various tasks or reading. It features both a high beam and a power-saving beam that will shine for 20 hours when the flashlight is fully charged. That takes about 40 minutes of vigorous cranking—another good upper-body workout. Available from batteryjunction.com for $22.95. For a more powerful hand-crank flashlight, try the Freeplay Jonta, $42.95. For a cheaper option, consider the Garrity Power Lite 3 LED Crank Light (Titanium Silver/Black). You can buy one at many hardware stores or at Amazon for about $9, and it has a lifetime guarantee. That’s important because several of the solar and hand-crank flashlights and radios on the market are cheaply made and likely to fail or break. REI and L.L. Bean guarantee the reliability of the products they sell.

Hollywood Moon Spot This is the niftiest little table spot lamp I’ve ever seen, and incredibly its LED bulb uses only 1.2 watts. That’s just another indication to me that LEDs, even more so than compact fluorescents, are the energy-saving lightbulbs of the future. Unfortunately, the Moon Spot costs $96. You can see it and other nice lights at coastportland.com.

Pedal Powered Prime Mover Remember how nutty it seemed when you heard about the guy who powered his TV and cooked his pancakes by a generator hooked up to his exercise bike? Well, nutty it’s not, although a very little girl once asked me, "When you’re watching a Western and you pedal a little slower, do the horses also run slower?" A very interesting inventor in Los Gatos, California, David Butcher, sells plans for a do-it-yourself, power-generating exercise bike. $50. (NOTE: If you have trouble with this link, search "David Butcher" or "pedal powered" on the Internet.)

Solar Powered Firefly Magic Firefly Lights These come on and go off slowly and really do look like fireflies. Seven electronic fireflies cost $67.95; get twelve for $87.95.

Does it make a diff? Even if hundreds of millions of people use all these off-grid gadgets, the resulting reduction in greenhouse gasses will only be a fraction of what it needs to be. But using them has raised my awareness of more important things to do. For example, each night before I leave my office I go around for one minute and turn off photocopiers and lights in the reception area and the office kitchen. During the day, whenever I leave the men's room or the printer room I turn off the lights. I’ve also pointed out to the manager of the ten-story building where I work that hundreds of lights burn unnecessarily evenings and weekends.

But more than that, I’m realizing that the most effective energy-saving gadget I have is my keyboard. I can use it to write to companies like Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI) and L.L. Bean to let them know there’s going to be a huge market for exercise equipment that also generates power, or solar and wind-powered appliances. Most important, I can write to my U.S. Senator and Congressperson and ask them to enact legislation that will promote mega energy-saving technologies. That means more than solar and wind. Turning the wasted heat that comes out of industrial smokestacks in the U.S. into electricity could replace more than 400 greenhouse- gas-emitting coal power plants! Denmark already generates more than half its electricity by using this wasted heat. A big problem, however, is that complicated Federal laws stand in the way. For more information, see Recycled Energy Development.