RU and Apple Team Up to Recycle Tons of Ewaste

disposing of ewaste

Warehouse Operations Assistants Donald Fisher and Matt Tilley assist with the loading of over two tons of ewaste for delivery to Apple, Inc. last Thursday in the University’s Burlington Warehouse.

Today’s computer technology changes swiftly, forcing RU to constantly upgrade its hardware to keep faculty and students current. To responsibly dispose of the old equipment, RU has again teamed up with Apple Inc. to recycle the university's cast-off computers.

On Thursday, Oct. 11, 10 pallets of RU ewaste, weighing more than 2 tons, were shipped to Apple’s recycling contractor, Simms Recycling in West Chicago, Ill. This is RU's third year as a participant in the program, which diverts old computers and peripherals from landfills.

Ewaste like computer monitors and televisions cannot be put into landfills because of their lead content, and other electronic equipment contains heavy metals like mercury, arsenic and cadmium requiring specialized recycling.

"Disposing of our ewaste is good stewardship," said Stan Wilkinson, coordinator of RU Recycling. "This was another chance for the campus to responsibly rid itself of a troublesome by-product of today’s technology."

Oct 18, 2012
Don Bowman
(540) 831-7523
dbowman@radford.edu