UNM students will offer the campus an opportunity to get rid of non-functioning or no longer needed electronic devices by bringing them to an E-Waste recycling event Thursday, May 1 from 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. on Cornell Plaza, between the Student Health Center and the Student Union Building. The E-Waste event is organized by the students in American Studies 182, “Science, Technology and Environment.”
The students spent this semester learning about the effects of technology on the environment, including the prevalence of E-waste deposited in landfills. The recycling event is the final project for the class.
E-waste is a popular, informal name for computers, televisions, VCRs, stereos, copiers, fax machines and other electronic products nearing the end of their usefulness. Many of these products can be recycling and disposed of properly.
Items accepted at Thursday’s event include cell phones, iPods, computers, calculators and other electronic items. Larger items, such as appliances, will not be accepted.
Electronics should be properly recycled because:
· Cathode ray tube (CRT) computer monitors or television displays contain an average of 6 pounds of lead each.
· When these components are illegally disposed and crushed in landfills, that lead is released into the environment.
· Lead can cause damage to the central and peripheral nervous systems, blood system and kidneys in humans.
· Lead accumulates in the environment, and has highly acute and chronic toxic effects on plants, animals and microorganisms.
· Other hazardous materials used in computers and other electronic devices include cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, PVC plastic and brominated flame retardant.
Before recycling computers and cell phones, remember to remove personal data.
To remove personal data from a PC visit: PC Data Removal.
For information regarding the removal of cell phone data visit: Cell Phone Recycling Data.
For more information about the event, please contact Kate Loewe at kloewe@unm.edu
Media Contact: Benson Hendrix, (505) 277-1816; email: bhendrix@unm.edu