Did you know that an average home has 24 electronic products? When you stop using your electronic products, they become electronic waste or e-waste. It is vital that this e-waste of yours does not end up in trash. Even small stuff like batteries and smartphones should not go in trash. E-waste is harmful to the environment and when you throw it in trash; you also end up throwing away the valuable metals present in it. This is why services of local electronic recycling and hard drive destruction are significant. They ensure that the e-waste is handled in the most reliable manner and the valuable substances present in them are recovered effectively.
What should you do with your old electronics?
Give them away for reuse: At times, you have a thing that is still working but you do not use it anymore. The best thing to do here is to give that thing away to somebody who could use it. If you cannot find a friend or a family member who wants that electronic item, you can donate it to a charity.
Recycle them: If you are not able to find someone who needs your electronic gadget, you can recycle it. Just like bottles or cans or newspapers from your house, electronic items can be recycled too.
Where should you take your electronic waste for recycling?
There are companies that are happy to take your old electronics items, take them apart and recycle them for important materials like glass, metals and plastic. A lot of these materials can be utilized to make new products.
Get in touch with a good e-waste recycler: When you are planning to recycle your old electronics, you should consider electronic recycling companies with an e-Stewards certification. E-stewards are recyclers who meet the best standards on how they recycle your stuff. They recycle electronic items in the best possible manner and do not ship them off to poor countries.
Staples stores: If you are not able to find an e-Steward recycler near your place, you can take some of your electronics back to any Staples Store for the purpose of electronic recycling. Staples is equipped with a free recycling program that works with an e-Steward recycler.
Best Buy stores: If you have certain big electronic items that Staples cannot take (eg. televisions), you can take these to any Best Buy Store.
Kids can also learn to fix their broken electronic gadgets on their own or do a fundraiser or smartphone recycling drive in their school. This will also encourage other kids to take e-waste recycling seriously.