Green / Recycling Program

Benefits to the environment

There are a number of environmental benefits to reusing and recycling computers, which are considered “e-waste”, according to the EPA:

• Electronic products are made from valuable resources, such as precious and other metals,plastics, and glass, all of which require energy to mine and manufacture.
• Reusing and recycling these materials from end-of-life electronics conserves natural resources and avoids air and water pollution, as well as greenhouse gas emissions that are caused by manufacturing new products.

Benefits of reuse

A recent study shows that reusing just one computer with a CRT monitor, rather than building a new one, saves 7,719 kilowatts of energy, 30 lbs. of hazardous waste, 77 lbs. of solid waste, 77 lbs. of materials, 147 lbs. (17.5 gallons) of water from being polluted, 32 tons of air from being polluted, and 1,333 lbs. of CO2 from being emitted. This is the equivalent of taking half a car off the road or saving 68 percent of one U.S. household’s allotment of electricity for a year.

See www.federalelectronicschallenge.net/resources/bencalc.htm