Recycling Computers

So after much, much searching I found a place that takes old computers for recycling in Madison, WI. I do not part with hazardous stuff like this easily but it was time: the computer decided that there was on operating system installed!!! Hey, who am I to argue, besides the computer was as old as my marriage... Finding a place to recycle the CPU and monitor was not easy. A few months ago, when I had to let my old laptop go, I was faced with the same long search. Finally I found that the city would take it for $10. Now, since I am thrifty, I tried one last thing: I went to the manufacturer's website and thankfully they had a free recycling program. If you have a Toshiba or Dell computer you can send it back to them for free. Check with other manufacturers' websites for their recycling programs. I wasn't this lucky this time around. We ended up paying $5 to recycle both the CPU and monitor, which was a bargain in my mind. So we drove away happy that we did the right thing once more; blah, blah, blah....

A few days later I read this article in Audubon:
http://www.audubonmagazine.org/features0805/technology.html

Apparently all these electronics are sent to developing countries and are "recycled" there in abysmal working conditions! I was pissed off to say the least! So my $5 are basically paying for the shipping of my trash to these poor countries!
What pisses me off the most is that we don't even need to reinvent the wheel to do the right thing. I mean, some European countries have already successful and safe recycling  facilities installed. All we would have to do is copy them! But no, why do that when we can just ship our crap all the way across the world? Grrrrr....

To cut a long story short, here are some websites to help you find a computer recycler in your area, even though if I had a basement I would just keep my old electronics there until I trusted this whole process...

I don't remember which one was more helpful for me:

http://www.electronicsrecycling.org

http://www.unionplus.org/benefits/computer/recycle-electronics.cfm

http://www.MidwestComputerRecycling.net

http://www.epa.gov/e-cycling/donate.htm

http://www.eiae.org/

http://www.cristina.org/

http://www.greendisk.com/

Fortunately it is getting easier to find places to have your old electronics recycled. Best Buy will take a variety of appliances as well as batteries etc...

www.bestbuy.com/recycling

The catch is that computer recycling is not available everywhere and at all times and fees may apply.