Environment
Top Five Tips For Recycling Electronics At Home And At Work
By
Sep 7, 2005, 22:02

(NAPSI)-Most consumers and businesses are accustomed to recycling paper, plastic, glass bottles, and aluminum cans but many do not realize that a wide range of everyday electronic products can also be recycled, including computers, printers and even print cartridges.

The country's growing dependence on electronics, both at home and in the workplace, has given rise to a new environmental challenge: disposing of used, unwanted electronic products, often called "e-waste." In March 2005, Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates conducted a telephone survey of more than 1,200 U.S. consumers to examine attitudes and issues related to e-waste. The survey, commissioned by HP, confirms that although there is a widespread lack of understanding of e-waste among 95 percent of consumers, the majority of Americans view e-waste as an important environmental issue. The survey findings show:

• 63 percent of consumers in the United States believe the environmental issue of e-waste is either more important than or just as important as, air pollution.

• 58 percent of American consumers are not aware of an e-waste recycling program where they live.

With new electronic products being developed at a rapid rate, obsolete technology is being stockpiled in basements, garages and office storage facilities. Instead of throwing these products away, companies like HP have established environmental, recycling programs for consumers and businesses. HP's program, entitled HP Planet Partners, is a return and recycling program (www.hp.com/ recycle) that allows customers to easily recycle used or unwanted technology products responsibly, donate working computer hardware to schools and charities around the world or trade in used products and upgrade to new HP products. This is a simple take-back program that aims to cut down on waste by offering consumers and businesses the ability to responsibly dispose of any brand of computing hardware. Since the program began in 1987, HP has recycled 616 million pounds of computer hardware and print cartridges globally.

In addition to recycling electronic waste at home, consider starting an electronics recycling program at your office. Here are five tips for getting started:

1. Obtain Top-level Management Support: The success of a recycling program hinges upon the endorsement of senior management. Also, recycling programs often require initial outlays of capital for necessary items such as collection bins. Management approval of a recycling budget ensures that resources are available when needed.

2. Appoint a Recycling Coordinator: A coordinator should be appointed to manage the entire recycling program. The person selected should be genuinely interested in recycling and able to interface with personnel at all organizational levels. It is advisable to incorporate recycling responsibilities into the employee's overall job description.

3. Assemble a Recycling Task Force: A task force should be formed to help the coordinator initiate the program. It may become a permanent advisory body to ensure continued program development. For best results, choose task force representatives from the departments that will be most affected by the recycling program, such as building maintenance. Enlist the support of the HR department to get this program started.

4. Develop a Collection Method: Whether the organization is housed in a number of buildings or in one building, it will be necessary to design a method for collecting electronic waste. The main thrust in developing an internal collection system should be convenience. Key considerations include:

• Recyclable materials: Identify what items can be recycled at the office and where they can be recycled. For example, HP's Planet Partners program accepts any HP or non-HP branded computer, printer, scanner, fax machine, desktop server, monitor or handheld device. HP also accepts the associated external components such as cables, mice and keyboards. (HP only accepts computer equipment, and does not accept monitors with broken glass.)

• Containers: Consider where containers are to be placed, the quantity needed, size, shape, color and labels that inform employees and customers what to put in and what to leave out.

• Storage: The central storage area should be clean, dry and free of fire hazards. If located outside, consider using covered storage bins to preserve material quality and prevent litter.

• Collection and return: Collecting recyclables and taking them to the central storage area is usually the responsibility of custodial staff. A printed operations schedule is helpful to collection personnel. A member of the company's recycling task force can be assigned the task of ordering the recycling service through HP as needed.

5. Implement an Education and Promotion Program: It's important to tell employees about office recycling policies, procedures and goals. For example, communicate how easy it is to recycle HP LaserJet and inkjet print cartridges, whether recycling in singles or bulk. Usual channels for conveying this type of information include staff meetings, orientation meetings for new employees, newsletters, fliers and posters.

For more information on recycling used or unwanted electronics, contact your municipal waste agency. Consumers can call (800)-CLEANUP (253-2687) to find a recycling center or visit HP Recycling at www.hp.com/recycle.

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