Thompson Falls to hold countywide e-waste pick up
THOMPSON FALLS – In an effort to keep the community as green as possible, Thompson Falls will be holding a countywide used electronics pick up.
The e-waste event will take place on Aug. 15-16 at the blue recycle trailer site, west of Thompson Falls near the Rural Fire Department.
Montana Department of Environmental Quality sponsors the event and Collective Recyclers will collect all items.
Collective Recyclers aim to recycle as smart as possible.
“Collective Recyclers wants to rethink recycling,” their website states. “We know that there is a huge demand for post-consumer goods and materials, and a strong willingness among consumers to supply that demand. What’s missing is a way of bringing them together.”
The organization partners with businesses, government organizations and non-profits among others, to provide a comprehensive recycling service.
According to Kathy Conlin, the receptionist for the Sanders County Commissioners, a drive has been held before, but never one that focused on humanitarian efforts.
“Collective Recycling is a really neat business and they take and ship all of their stuff to third world countries,” Conlin explained.
The drive will pick up a variety of different electronics, including but not limited to televisions, laptops, hard drives, microwave ovens, gaming consoles, networking equipment, and servers.
The e-waste will be shipped to ECS Refining in Stockton, Calif, one of the biggest e-waste recyclers on the planet. One hundred percent of the material is recycled there with nothing being sent to landfills or overseas to be dismantled in countries with lax environmental regulations.
According to ECS Refining’s website, the company is “the only certified recycler that provides both end-of-life electronics recycling and reuse services on a large scale.”
Not only will the drive collect electronics, but the organization will also be collecting other reusable goods such as clothing, fabrics, toys, purses, curtains and backpacks to name a few.
These products will be taken back to Collective Recycling’s facility in Laurel to be sorted and processed. From there it is shipped around the world to be reused.
“About 92 percent is preserved for reuse and the majority of the rest is recycled,” said Manager for supply, IT, and marketing of Collective Recyclers, Henry Clayton. “Less than one percent goes into the landfill.”
Conlin has been working hard with Dusti Johnson of DEQ to help bring this pick up event to the area.
“It’s the right thing to do instead of just throwing things in the waste stream and it actually helps the taxpayers pay less on their solid waste fees through their taxes,” Conlin explained. “The more trash we have to take to Missoula, the more recycling we have to have to offset it.”
The event will take place from 1-6 p.m. on August 15 and from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on August 16.
A complete list of acceptable e-waste can be found at collectiverecyclers.com/ewaste.