How to recycle or dump e-waste
The problem, of course, is that consumer electronics contain toxic substances such as cadmium, lead, mercury, beryllium, polyvinyl chloride, or PVC and brominated flame retardants, or BFRs, to name a few of the nasty ones, and this toxic runoff poisons our soil, water and ecosystems.
Plus, proper e-waste management can help mitigate global warming. an estimated 98 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents were released into the atmosphere from discarded refrigerators and air conditioners in 2019, the report says, contributing about 0.3% of all global greenhouse gas emissions.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s website lists several ways to donate or recycle electronics. You can see all the options on where to bring in your larger tech items (like computers and printers) at various drop-off locations across the country, including big-box retailers, and such.
Smaller items like smartphones could also be dropped off, in most cases, or can be traded in or mailed through programs offered by mobile phone carriers.
It’s important to properly remove data from your digital devices before you recycle them – just in case it falls into the wrong hands.
Some people physically destroy hard drives before recycling an old computer, such as taking a drill or hammer to it, but you don’t want to physically hurt yourself in the process. Good software should do the trick.