One place you don’t want your used electronics to wind up is in the media.
We get asked all the time why we charge money to recycle computers and monitors and TVs, cell phones, Blackberries and other used electronics. The reason we get asked this question is that there are a lot of “recyclers” out there who will take this stuff away for free, or even pay to take it off your hands. Why, we are asked, does IRN charge to recycle electronics when other companies will do it for free.
There’s...

This is a story for everyone who says that recycling and reuse cost too much and aren’t worth the effort, and for everyone who has to deal with those folks.
Newton is a suburban city, population about 85,000, less than ten miles from downtown Boston. When the City opened a new high school in August 2010, it reused and donated locally as much furniture as possible from the old school, but was still left with more than 4,000 items of surplus furniture and equipment that needed to go away. Most...

Boston.com recently published a couple of anti-recycling columns by Jeff Jacoby. I can’t bring myself to write down the link. If you want you can find them easily enough. They’re standard diatribe. Recycling is a pain in the neck. Recycling costs more than throwing stuff away.

Backed by standard sources for persons with Mr. Jacoby’s point of view: The Heartland Institute (Wikipedia: “The Heartland Institute questions the scientific consensus on climate change, arguing that global...

Weird Waste Collections and Electronics Amnesty: Simple & Successful
Electronics Amnesties are a different take on Weird Waste. Used electronics are a liability. They contain information you don’t want to escape. They contain hazardous substances. Many of them, particularly CRT and flat-screen monitors, TVs, laptops, and anything with a rechargeable battery, are regulated wastes. And like dust mites or cockroaches, they’re everywhere – you just can’t see them. Hiding in closets,...

97% Waste Reduction at Smith College Ford Hall through Deconstruction, Reuse, and Recycling

Smith College’s Ford Hall is a 140,000 square foot brick and steel structure designed house Smith’s engineering, chemistry, and computer science programs. Ford Hall uses sustainable design, construction, and operating elements not only for their environmental and economic benefits, but also as teaching tools. In this light Smith sought to maximize and document the financial costs and benefits...