Does your country have an e-waste recycling scheme?
this post was submitted on 05 Dec 2023
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PLEASE don't send e-waste to a landfill!! There are components of e-waste that, if disposed of improperly, can add hazardous pollutants to your air and water, like mercury and beryllium.
If you want to make sure it's disposed of properly, google e-waste + your area, and look for programs run by your local or state/provincial government
Search for electronics recycling in your area. They’ll take stuff for free or a small fee, depending on what it is. They’ll dissect the stuff and reuse all the components
There are plenty of those places around me, and they advertise agressively everywhere. But there are also the metal scrapyards that will pay YOU for your e-waste. That's where most of these recycling places take the stuff you paid them to dispose of. If you want the service of having it picked up, I'd say fill your boots, but I will just go the scrapyard with a binful once in a while when I plan to be in the area.
You can donate to a local thrift store or charity shop.
I know you are joking but in case others do not know: DO NOT DO This.
Give those nuggets the 1-grit!!
/s
Yeah good question. What do I do with my Apple PowerMac from back in the day? I've held onto it because, well - I like it. But I really don't use it for any actual computing - mostly to play old Mac games and watch Star Trek screensavers (!). I hate to give it up but I have no room to set it up anymore.
I think playing games you like is a great reason to keep a computer around, and, technically speaking, it is doing actual computing to make those games and screensavers work.
Too bad you don't have space to set it up anymore. I hope you can find a way to enjoy your computer again.
That's true and I'm amazed it still is computing away (or would be if I had it set up right now). I have a newer computer and it's the standard windows PC thing, and I really don't enjoy it as much as I enjoyed my old Mac. There was a lot of weird stuff on Mac computers, games and things that were so out there. And most of them *(even ones that should be for PC also) don't run on my newer system.
9yo me: Build a robot!
38yo me: Yeah, build a robot!
Send em to me lol
It depends what country you are in. In the UK a retailer must accept electronic items for recycling (or provide you with the details of a free recycling service) The local council will have a recycling service (in most areas small appliances can be left out with your recycling bin). For items which might have a value there are companies that will buy them from you for a small amount and then recycle.
Please do not take them to a charity shop without checking beforehand as many cannot afford the testing needed before they can resell.
Do everything possible to make sure no personal data exists and then e waste dispose in your community or just post it to ebay dirt cheap - you can often get the shipping costs covered and bump your review number up this way. I've had some electronics die where I was not able to get personal info cleared off. In those cases I smash them up with a hammer, box them up and ewaste dispose of the box ( surface pro sadly met this fate recently).
The ocean is a biiiiiiiiiig area... I mean all the cool companies are doing it! /s