The Green Parent » landfills

E-Cycling: The Green Parent's Guide to Disposing of Electronic Gadgets

Jenn Savedge — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:59:00 +0000

As a parent with young children, I have found that it is almost as hard to keep up with technology as it is to keep up with a two year old. Old model computers, televisions, and cell phones are replaced faster than you can say VCR. But where do all those gadgets go when they die?

According to Earth 911, Americans tossed 1.5 billion tons of e-waste in 2006, including 44 million computers and televisions. Worldwide, 88 billion tons of e-waste were trashed in 2006.

Each one of these electronic gadgets is chock full of toxic chemicals like mercury and lead that create an environmental mess when they leach into the soil and groundwater. CRT-based computer monitors and televisions (the kinds that have tubes) contain on average 4-8 pounds of lead. Flat panel models contain less lead but more mercury. (Earth 911 site can give details about the nasty stuff that can be found in your TVs, cell phones and computers.) Industry experts estimate even though e-waste currently accounts for only 1 to 4% of municipal waste, it may be responsible for as much as 70% of the heavy metals in landfills, including 40% of all lead.

Landfilling electronics also wastes the otherwise useful materials such as glass, copper, aluminum, plastic and other components that could be extracted and reused. Finally, of the e-waste that is recycled (an admittedly small percentage of the lot) roughly 50-80% is exported to countries such as China and Mexico where it is dismantled without regard to human or environmental safety.

So if you have an old gadget that you want to get rid of, it is extremely important to make sure it is disposed of properly. Here’s how to green your e-waste:

Find It A New Home: Keep your old electronic devices out of the landfill by finding them a new home. Ask around among friends and family, Freecycle, or donate the item.

Send It Back:

Contact the product’s manufacturer to find out if they have a policy for taking back their old gadgets. Some companies, such as Dell, will take back not only their own products but their competitor’s as well.

Recycle It Right: Check out the EPA’s Plug-In to Recycling site for a list of companies that sponsor e-waste take back events and to find an e-cycling event in your community. If you can’t find one nearby, check out the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition’s list of Responsible Recyclers in your area.

Toting Canvas

Jenn Savedge — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 17:42:00 +0000

As a Green Parent, I try to minimize my impact on the environment each day, especially at the store. I take the time to buy organic and locally grown foods as well as all-natural personal care products whenever possible. I check ingredient labels and “vote with my wallet” to support companies with an environmental backbone. But all of this effort used to go out the window when I got to the checkout line and was forced to answer the inevitable question…Paper or Plastic?

According to the Environmental News Network, 90 percent of all grocery bags are plastic with Americans alone going through about 100 billion plastic bags each year. Yet only 1 to 3 percent of these bags are ever recycled. The rest line our waterways, sewers, street corners, and occasionally landfills where they take hundreds of years to break down into toxic particles that leach into the water and soil. And paper is no better, the 10 billion or so paper bags that Americans use each year consume 14 million trees and cause pollution and recycling problems of their own.

In the past, I tried to reuse plastic bags whenever possible around my house. But the time has come to for a more eco-friendly option…reusable totes. If it sounds too dauting, just start slowly. Toss 1 or 2 reusable tote bags in your diaper bag or in your car so that you will have at least a few on hand the next time you’re at the store. Once you get the hang of it, try adding a few more totes to your collection until you no longer need to use plastic. Here’s a few more tips:

Look around your favorite store to see if they offer a reusable alternative. Trader Joe’s, Wegmans, Publix, Giant, and Albertsons all offer reusable cloth bags for sale in their stores (some for as little as $1 each).

DIY: I’m not that handle with a needle, but even I can whip up a homemade tote bag. Here’s a few instructional sites you can try:

Make-It-Easy
And Sew It Is
DLTK Kids

Buy “Preloved”: Tote bags multiply faster than rabbits so you are sure to find a good deal at your local thrift store or area garage sales.

Win: If you have scoured your house and local thrift stores and you still can’t find a decent tote, register to win one through The Green Parent. Just enter your info in the column on the right. I’ll give away one free bag each week for the next year!

Oh…and if you still have a bunch of plastic bags laying around your house, check out these sites for some creative ways to reuse them:

Reader’s Digest Living
The Frugal Life

Green Parent Tip: If you have a problem remembering to put your totes back in the car after you’ve used them; try hanging them on the doorknob or in the same place you put your car keys!

Recycle This!

Jenn Savedge — Wed, 30 May 2007 11:32:00 +0000

Recycling is a great idea, but when you’re pressed for time, it may seem just so much easier to toss things in the trash. Let’s face it, when you’re trying to clean up the dinner dishes, help your kids with their homework, and put up a load of laundry, it can be a real drag to rinse out that empty jar of spaghetti sauce or can of soup. But keep this in mind…the more stuff you recycle, the fewer trips you will have to make to the dumpster. Take a minute now to rinse a jar and you’ll save time and energy later schlepping garbage. As a bonus, recycling creates jobs, saves energy, preserves natural resources, reduces greenhouse-gas emissions, and keeps toxins from leaking out of landfills.