E‐Cycling!

Preventing waste in the first place is preferable to any waste management option, including recycling. Donating used (but still operating) electronics for reuse extends the lives of valuable products and keeps them out of the waste stream for a longer period of time. Reuse, in addition to being an environmentally preferable alternative, also benefits society. If donation for reuse or repair is not a viable option you can send your used electronics for recycling. Recyclers recover more than 100 million pounds of materials from electronics each year.

Consumer electronics – including TVs and other video equipment, computers, assorted peripherals, audio equipment, and phones – make up almost two percent of the municipal solid waste stream. Although electronics comprise a small percentage of the total municipal solid waste stream, the quantity of electronic waste that we are generating is steadily increasing. In 2007, discarded TVs, computers, peripherals (including printers, scanners, faxes, mice, keyboards and cell phones) totaled about 2.5 million tons.

Lead, mercury, cadmium and brominated flame retardants are among the substances of concern in electronics. These substances are included in the products for important performance characteristics, but can cause problems if the products are not properly managed at end of life.

Lead is used in glass in TV and PC cathode ray tubes as well as solder and interconnects; older CRTs typically contain on average 4 lbs of lead (sometimes as much as 7 lbs in older CRTs), while newer CRTs contain closer to 2 lbs of lead.

Mercury is used in small amount in bulbs to light flat panel computer monitors and notebooks.

Brominated flame retardants are widely used in plastic cases and cables for fire prevention; the more problematic
ones have been phased out of newer products but remain in older products.

Cadmium was widely used in ni‐cad rechargeable batteries for laptops and other portables. Newer batteries (nickel‐metal hydride and lithium ion) do not contain cadmium.

Several manufacturers offer recycling services for electronics:

• Apple
• Canon
• Dell
• Epson
• Fujitsu
• Gateway
• Hewlett Packard
• IBM
• Intel
• Kyocera
• Lexmark
• LG
• Motorola
• Nokia
• Panasonic
• Samsung
• Sharp
• Sony
• Toshiba

Electronic products are made from valuable resources, such as precious and other metals, plastics, and glass, all of which require energy to mine and manufacture them. Reusing and recycling these materials from end‐of‐life electronics conserves our natural resources and avoids air and water pollution, as well as greenhouse gas emissions that are caused by manufacturing new products.

Several retailers also offer recycling services for electronics:

• Best Buy
• Office Depot
• Radio Shack
• Staples

Early in 2008, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) initiated the "Mail Back" pilot program. This program makes it easier for domestic customers to discard used or obsolete personally owned small electronic devices in an environmentally responsible way. Customers use free envelopes to mail back personally owned, empty inkjet cartridges, PDAs, Blackberries, cell phones, digital cameras, iPods and MP3 players – without having to pay for postage. Postage is paid by Clover Technologies Group, a nationally recognized company that recycles, remanufactures, and remarkets inkjet cartridges, laser cartridges, and small electronics.

A/LM arranged for the USPS to supply “Mail Back” envelopes to all overseas posts as of November 2008. The free postage‐paid envelopes are currently located with mailing supplies in the APO and are only to be used to mail back personally owned empty inkjet cartridges that are purchased for personal use; and personally owned small electronic devices. No Government property (ILMS bar coded or non‐bar coded) may be disposed of via this program.