The Sustainability Office hosted the first Annual Electronic Drive in 2011.  It took place on November 22-24th from 11-3pm in the Meeting Place at UTSC (outside SW213B).

It was a huge success and the Sustainability Office will be having one every year based on the participation of the UTSC community. We collected over 100 items which includes computers, monitors, laptops, digital cameras, cell phones, batteries and much more.

What are the benefits of recycling electronics?

Similar to the benefits of recycling paper and plastics, there are many environmental and economical benefits of recycling electronics,

Recycling electronics helps to:

•    Prevents dangerous substances from reaching landfill where it can contaminate the water and soil

•    Conserves natural resources

•    Reduces the need for new landfills and incinerators

•   Provides companies a market for their "obsolete" equipment – with regards to tax reductions

•    Frees  up space occupied by obsolete equipment

•    Provides recognition of a company’s charitable contributions

•    Allows individuals to develop problem solving skills when refurbishing these computers, and also encourages reuse.

What are the specific dangers of electronic waste?

• Electronic devices contain harmful metals that are dangerous to environmental and human health. For instance, cathode ray tubes (CRTs) in televisions and computer monitors contain 5-8 pounds of lead.

•  Lead can cause damage to the nervous system, and contribute to kidney and endocrine problems. Cadmium can also affects the kidneys. Mercury can affect proper brain functioning. Hexavalent chromium can lead to tumors and cancer development in humans.

•  There are also environmental effects of these harmful metals if they leach into the ground.  While modern landfills can have liners, a thin plastic placed at the base of a landfill to prevent ground contamination, they can fail in certain circumstances. If this happens, groundwater contamination may occur.

                                                                    Information from Greenpeace International &

If you have any batteries or cell phones to be disposed of properly, drop them off at the Sustainability Office (SW213B).  For disposing of other electronics, go to Environment Days hosted by the City of Toronto or drop of at OES approved collection sites. Electronic Waste can also be dropped off at 1 Transfer Scarborough from Tuesday-Friday between 10-6pm and Saturday from 7am-12:30pm.