Electronics

updated: Monday, May 14, 2012

What is E-waste?

Electronic waste, or e-waste, is any waste that has a circuit board or a cathode ray tube (CRT). E-waste includes items such as CD and MP3 players, radios, speakers, stereos, stereos receivers, remote controls, monitors, laptops, CPUs, home networking devices, keyboards, mice, printers, speakers, scanners, storage devices, fax machines, cell phones, PDAs, answering machines, cordless phones, televisions, camcorders, game systems, and satellite receivers.

Why is it a Problem?

These products may contain lead, mercury, PCB capacitors and other heavy metals. These toxic materials, if not properly handled, persist in the environment and pose a significant threat to humans, plants, animals and fish.

Proper Disposal of Electronic Waste

In Minnesota it is illegal to place electronics containing a CRT in the trash. Most TVs and computer monitors contain a CRT and must be recycled. Disposal options include:

Bring them to a Hennepin County Drop-off Facility. Hennepin County accepts all types of consumer electronics free of charge (up to 5 of the same type of device per year) at the county drop-off facilities. Consumer electronics are collected from households only; no electronics are accepted from businesses.
For more disposal information, check out Hennepin County's A to Z Guide.
Take Back Programs, retailers and manufacturers such as HP, RadioShack, Best Buy, and others will take back your old electronics.
Organizations and Businesses registered with the MPCA as a collector of consumer electronics.

Items with an automatic shut-off feature such as toasters, coffee pots, curling irons, and tea pots do not contain a mercury switch and may be placed in the garbage. Other small electric items such as fans, hairdryers, and heating pads are not considered a consumer electronic and may be placed in the trash.

How do I protect my security when I recycle my electronics?

You are responsible for destroying data that you consider private or confidential. When dropping off items at a Hennepin County Drop-off Facility, the County does not guarantee the security of data stored on the electronic devices it collects. It's up to you to destroy data that you consider private or confidential. To protect your security when recycling electronics:

Prior to deleting information, backup or transfer any data you may need.
Remove and destroy media, such as diskettes, CDs, or PC cards.
Be aware that reformatting your disk drive or deleting files does not completely erase the data. For this reason, Hennepin County advises a more secure method of removal, such as using a disk-wiping software program.

Additional Resources

Hennepin County

e-Stewards

Electronics TakeBack Coalition

Minnesota's Electronics Recycling Act

RethinkRecycling