I’ve always been what you would call an environmentally conscious person. It’s just the way I was brought up. My dad has been known to go around our home not only turning things off, but actually unplugging them. See, even when something is plugged in it is actually draining minute amounts of energy. Being an environmentally sound person encompasses a lot of things, even as minute as not littering, to something more complex like efficient resource management.

Being green is not a type of person; it’s not something one does for fun in their spare time. Thinking sustainably is something that every person and every business needs to be doing. It is an essential. We eat to survive. Being environmentally responsible is a necessity for our survival. If we do not act in sustainable ways then how are we supposed to go forth? It’s a serious topic that gets a lot of attention and yet it is not enough attention. One particular aspect that many people overlook and I myself overlooked for quite some time is electronic waste.

Technology is advancing faster and faster every day. This means that items such as our phones, printers, computers, TVs, microwaves, etc. are becoming obsolete faster and faster. Well the problem is one can’t just throw these items out in the trash. The bigger problem is most people do. The even bigger problem is that most people don’t know that they shouldn’t or don’t know why they shouldn’t.

Electronic waste, otherwise known as e-waste, contains things harmful to not only our environment but the human body. These hazards include mercury, lead, arsenic, and a whole lot more things that cause cancer in humans. A poignant article on Green-blog.org puts it this way, “In the process of taking apart the electronics, these overseas workers are exposed to dangerous toxins, putting themselves, their families and their environment at risk. These toxins include heavy metals such as lead, beryllium and mercury, as well as chlorinated solvents, flame retardants and polyvinyl chloride (PVC). These are all deadly chemicals. Why should people in developing countries have to pay for the greed of our wasteful consumer society?”

Let’s stop letting these chemicals leech into our environment and into our bodies. Let’s recycle our e-waste! We can reuse the precious metals and keep our home nice and clean. Everyone from individual citizens to companies of any size should be properly recycling all of their e-waste. Check your local listings to find out a place near you.

Anyone in or around the New York area should check out 4th Bin. They have been issued an e-Stewards certification. “Certified e-Stewards recyclers adhere to the e-Stewards Standard for Responsible Recycling and Reuse of Electronic Equipment®; written by the environmental community with leaders in the industry to protect human health and the global environment.” This is important because a good amount of places that claim to recycle ship the e-waste overseas where the metals are reused but the chemicals still leech into our environment.

e-Stewards make sure that e-cycling is carried out to the highest standards. 4th Bin is one of the great mindful companies bringing us into the future. Tuesday March 27th 4th Bin will be attending the CBSAC/NY hosted event, “Cash for Trash.” The CBSAC/NY (Columbia Business School Alumni Club of New York) “Provide convenient networking opportunities that encourage members to get acquainted, forge business contacts, make new friends, keep up with old friends, have fun, facilitate access, and pursue shared interests in a stimulating, receptive, supportive, and collegial environment.”

Cash for Trash will be held at PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP 300 Madison Avenue, PwC Auditorium SW Corner of 42nd Street from 5:30 – 9:00. CBSAC/NY members will receive a discounted entrance fee. Registration in advance is suggested and cheaper. There will be networking and exploring opportunities to turn trash into money through proper recycling. Artists and furniture designers have even figured out how to make money from electronic waste! So remember, recycle your electronic waste, don’t spread cancer.

Every January consumers look at the shiny new gadgets that have come into their home. They also assess the outdated and nonworking video game systems, laptops, TVs, cell phones, AV equipment and other gadgets that clutter their households. Just returning from CES, and another wave of new products including the pervasive tablets and 3D TVs, it’s easy to see that people are hooked on technology. As cool as that is, as more products and technologies are developed, it is evident that old outdated technologies are discarded, ending up as e-waste.

Statistics from a UNEP report predict that by 2020 e-waste just from old computers will have increased from 200 to 400 percent from the 2007 levels in the US and by 500 percent in India. By 2020, China’s e-waste from mobile phones will be 7 times higher than 2007 levels and 18 times higher in India. The report has the US producing nearly 3 million TONS of e-waste in 2010; China produced 2.3 million tons of e-waste in 2010, coming in second.

So what can you do? In the CE industry, some manufacturers like Toshiba have moved programs into place, and big box retailer Best Buy offers e-waste drop off. But schlepping heavy electronics is one of the top reasons people give for not e-cycling. Let’s face it; you have to be pretty motivated to recycle e-waste. You have to be willing to drive it somewhere, often at pre-set times and locations for an annual e-cycling day.

If you live in NYC, you have a great option. The 4th Bin (The 1st bin is trash; the 2nd bin is paper; the 3rd bin is plastics, the 4th bin is e-waste….Get it?).  They are the only company to actually pick up electronic waste from local businesses and residents, and provide a simple and inexpensive means of rescue and disposal. They also, in fact, ensure that what they e-cycle is being repurposed and recycled safely. The 4th Bin only does business with E-Steward Recyclers who uphold the highest standard of environmental and social responsibility. Right now, The 4^th Bin wants to grow awareness about e-cyling in NYC, if you live anywhere in NYC boroughs (excluding Staten Island) and you are one of the first 50 people to “like” The 4^th Bin on their Facebook page, they will give you a FREE e-waste pick up.

Successfully getting your computer or cell phone into the recycling stream rather than the household trash is just one step in the process of making sure it doesn’t end up dumped in landfill. While those who aren’t located in NYC might have a harder time properly disposing e-waste, we all need to do our part until the process is more efficient so don’t give up. No matter where you live, join The 4^th Bin community to stay up to date on local, national and global e-waste news and mandates through their news and Blog.

Click here for free e-waste pickup terms and conditions.

For those of us who live in or border a state with an active bottle bill the sight of automated bottle and can recyclers is not new. For those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about — the recyclers are known as reverse vending machines and are typically located in the front of your local market and give you a nickel or dime for every bottle or can you deposit.

As a child I used to love going to with my Aunt to return the endless amounts of cans that her side of the family seemed to produce…You put the can in a slot, it makes a crunching noise and then it’s on to the next one. When you were finished a receipt would print and you could take that to the customer service people and get cash for your trash! In the end her good recycling efforts were rewarded when in the early 1990′s she put a  $5,000 deposit down on a brand new Jeep entirely out of recycling money! Fast forward to 2010 and in walks the Pepsi Dream Machine

The Pepsi Dream Machine is similar to traditional reverse vending machines except they provides on-the-go recycling. Ever finished a can or bottle of soda and had nowhere to recycle the bugger (shakes head yes)? In the past you either had to throw it away or if you could pack it and take it home for recycling…well now you can redeem it for prizes. Yes folks…recycling for prizes — get your gold stars ready to take home for Mom to put on the fridge!

Dream Machines have been popping up in states without bottle bills (only 11 states have such bills) where folks do not have access to trash to cash programs. Waste Management plans to operate with Keep America Beautiful and its 600 local affiliates  in the US, by the end of 2010 they hope to have 3000 kiosks in operation. Those inclined to use the machines can deposit aluminum cans or plastic bottles in exchange for points redeemable at the venue hosting the machine or online at Greenopolis.com, a community sponsored by Waste Management that promotes recycling and rewards those who recycle.

Overall I think it’s a pretty neat idea–especially since it does not compete with local bottle bills, and if it encourages people who don’t normally recycle the mass of plastic bottles thrown away each year, then I can’t complain.

Posted by Amanda| follow me on Twitter