The state of Oregon is reporting that halfway through the second year of its Oregon E-Cycles Program, 11.9 million pounds of electronic scrap have been collected for recycling. This is 2.4 million pounds more than the amount of electronics collected in the first six months of last year.
The E-Cycles program provides residents of the state with convenient, free recycling of televisions, computers and monitors. Electronics manufacturers finance the program.
Last year, a total of 19 million pounds of electronic scrap was collected.
In a release announcing the figures, Kathy Kiwala, the E-Cycles program lead, says she expects this year’s collection total to surpass the state’s minimum annual goal of 21.5 million pounds.
In addition to the close to 12 million pounds of electronics that have been processed for recycling, 11,687 television sets, computer sand monitors have been diverted for re-use so far this year, according to the state.
“Apparently, there were plenty of Oregonians who didn’t rush to clean out their old, unwanted televisions, computers and monitors in 2009. And that’s OK, because this program is ongoing,” says Kiwala. The high collection numbers from this year and 2009 attest to the need for and popularity of a “good environmental solution to dealing with the growing mound of e-waste,” she adds.
Increased e-waste collection numbers in 2010 are attributable to several factors, Kiwala adds. Most likely it is a direct effect of a TV, computer and monitor disposal ban that went into effect Jan. 1, 2010. Garbage collectors, transfer station operations and other disposal sites are working with their customers to redirect these items into the E-Cycles program.
A list of collection sites participating in the Oregon E-Cycles program is available at www.oregonecycles.org.
In addition to the Oregon E-Cycles program, three other electronics manufacturing groups operate separate collection and recycling programs in the state. They are Dell Inc., the Individual Producers Responsibility Group (IPR) and the Manufacturers Recycling Management Co. LLC (MRM).
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