Donating computer equipment for reuse is better than recycling.
If reuse isn't an option, recycling is better than throwing it "away" but it can still be harmful due to the many toxic components in computers and other electronic equipment. Some electronics recycling operations are better than others. The really bad ones involve such things as incinerating the toxic (PVC) plastic casings, using U.S. prison labor to handle the toxic process of recycling these materials (without the labor protections that might exist outside the prison system), shipping wastes to "third world" countries where weaker environmental laws exist, etc.
BACKGROUND ON THE PROBLEMS OF COMPUTER AND ELECTRONIC WASTES:
Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition's Clean Computer Campaign http://www.svtc.org/cleancc/
Computer Take Back Campaign http://www.computertakeback.com
Consumer Education Initiative (industry website with pointers to electronics recycling services in your area) http://www.eiae.org
Elemental, Inc. http://www.eleminc.com (Philadelphia, PA)
Recycling Services, Inc. http://members.aol.com/rcyclngsrv/ (Pottstown, PA - about an hour north of Philly) [more responsible than Elemental Inc.; brings stuff to Supreme in NJ]
Supreme Recycling http://www.supremerecycling.com (on the central coast of NJ)
COMPUTER ENERGY EFFICIENCY:
Energy Star Computer Equipment Standard http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=po wer_mgt.pr _power_management
Slashdot Mirror
Donating computer equipment for reuse is better than recycling.
p hp (see top two links)
c omp.pd f
s olutions/recy cler_s_pledge.cfm
e /articlepa ge.cfm?ArticleId=524
o wer_mgt.pr _power_management
If reuse isn't an option, recycling is better than throwing it "away" but it can still be harmful due to the many toxic components in computers and other electronic equipment. Some electronics recycling operations are better than others. The really bad ones involve such things as incinerating the toxic (PVC) plastic casings, using U.S. prison labor to handle the toxic process of recycling these materials (without the labor protections that might exist outside the prison system), shipping wastes to "third world" countries where weaker environmental laws exist, etc.
BACKGROUND ON THE PROBLEMS OF COMPUTER AND ELECTRONIC WASTES:
Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition's Clean Computer Campaign
http://www.svtc.org/cleancc/
Computer Take Back Campaign
http://www.computertakeback.com
Toxic Dude (Clean Computer Campaign targets Dell)
http://www.toxicdude.com
European Union Directives on Detoxifying Computers and Recycling Electronic Wastes
http://www.informinc.org/summaries_waste.
Exporting Harm: The High-Tech Trashing Of Asia
http://www.ban.org/E-waste/technotrashfinal
Electronics Recycler's Pledge of True Stewardship
http://www.computertakeback.com/the_
E-waste related news
http://www.ban.org/ban_news/news.html
COMPUTER REUSE RESOURCES:
National Cristina Foundation (donated to people with disabilities)
http://www.cristina.org
TEN TIPS FOR DONATING A COMPUTER
http://www.techsoup.org/products/recycl
Nonprofit Technology Resources
http://ntronline.org (Philadelphia, PA)
COMPUTER/ELECTRONICS RECYCLING RESOURCES:
Consumer Education Initiative (industry website with pointers to electronics recycling services in your area)
http://www.eiae.org
Elemental, Inc.
http://www.eleminc.com (Philadelphia, PA)
Recycling Services, Inc.
http://members.aol.com/rcyclngsrv/ (Pottstown, PA - about an hour north of Philly)
[more responsible than Elemental Inc.; brings stuff to Supreme in NJ]
Supreme Recycling
http://www.supremerecycling.com (on the central coast of NJ)
COMPUTER ENERGY EFFICIENCY:
Energy Star Computer Equipment Standard
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=p