Recycling Computers and Mobile Phones
Wednesday December 1, 2010
In Australia each year around 2.5 million new computers are bought, while 1.6 million broken or outdated ones are dumped in landfill, and the same again are left in storage. (So imagine how many there are in the UK or the US!) Only 500,000 are recycled, yet computers and their components are extremely toxic in landfill, leaching lead, cadmium, mercury and other nasty metals into the soil. There are a number of companies that either recycle, refurbish or reuse computers – visit www.recyclingnearyou.com.au to find the closest one to you. Some will pick up from your home, either free or for a small fee, while others allow you to drop your old computer equipment off to them.
Today I borrowed a car and drove out to Homebush Bay, to Computer Source Australia (Unit 6, 1 Burroway Road, corner of Hill Road, Homebush Bay NSW 2127, phone 02 9648 4098, email computersource@bigpond.com), and dropped off my old, no longer working PC (the one that died halfway through the writing of my first book, taking much of it with it!), plus the printer, cables, keyboard etc.
Later, while buying some Christmas presents at the Hunger Site, I noticed how many of their gifts are made from recycled materials, from tyres and water bottles to computer components, which is awesome on so many levels...
I also came across a wonderful program where you can hand in two old mobile phones to Mobile Muster, and they will not only recycle all the parts (which are totally toxic if left in landfill), meaning less mining and use of our natural resources, but they'll also donate, in collaboration with Oxfam, a duck to a family in Mozambique, so they can add eggs to their meagre diet.
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