Saratoga News
News
Be prepared for the future--help Scouts collect e-waste
ByShannon Burkey
With each new year comes new toys--a big screen TV, a computer, a new cell phone--and the dilemma of what to do with the old. But this year, Boy Scout Troop 535 is offering Saratoga residents a safe and easy way to get rid of the old.
On Jan. 6 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the North Campus, Troop 535 will hold an e-waste recycling program and is urging residents to take advantage of this free and easy way to dispose of old electronic equipment that could wreak havoc on the environment if disposed of in landfills.
"It's really environmentally unfriendly to just throw away electronics. They contain lots of chemicals and precious metals that are unsafe for the environment, and when crushed they can contaminate the soil and water supply," said Boy Scout Julian Lewis, who is heading up the project.
Electronic equipment, such as televisions and computer monitors, contains cathode-ray tubes, or CRTs, which contain hazardous chemicals such as mercury and chromium that can seep into the soil when crushed.
So, in an effort to better the environment while offering a service to the community, the troop partnered with San Jose-based Asset Services and Liquidators, a company that has been safely disposing of electronic equipment in the area since 1998. ASL is reimbursed by the state for the waste it collects. The company then pays the Scouts 40 cents per pound for the electronic waste they collect.
In the past, Troop 535 has helped the community by recycling newspapers, and for the past 10 years it has recycled Christmas trees for a small fee; the trees are then turned into mulch. But over the years the need for those services has dwindled as the city started offering them for free.
"Over the decades the Scouts have been an environmentally friendly group. When I was a kid, we did newspaper recycle drives to raise money. However, the cities caught on, and eventually newspapers became a curb-side recyclable," said assistant scoutmaster Howard Miller, who has seen the progression firsthand. "We switched to Christmas tree recycling in the mid-'80s. In its day, it was also a valuable service, but again cities now offer curbside tree recycling."
With both of their recycling programs a thing of the past, the Scouts looked to the future for a new type of fundraising program that would also benefit the community.
"Since we're going into the 21st century, we decided to deal with electronics," Julian said. "The city doesn't have a service like this yet."
The Scouts will collect any electronic equipment during the drive. ASL will then take the equipment apart and separate the pieces into reusable parts, recyclable parts and raw materials that will be properly disposed of.
"This service is free to anyone who wants to bring us their stuff," Miller said. "As long as they can get it into their cars, we'll get it out."
This is the Scouts' first attempt at an e-waste recycling program in Saratoga, but if all goes well Julian said he hopes it will become a semiannual event in the community.
"We'll try this one out, learn from it and be more prepared next time," he said. "We want it to be something the community can be proud of and know every six months, they can bring their electronics to us, and we'll take care of it for them."
