Getting Rid of Electronics

Okay so this is a copy and paste from an email I get every day on tips for staying green! I LOVE it. If you want to sign up it's called idealbite.com and they offer great tips for living green. You can sign up to get one a day and they also have one for moms and I find those tips WAY more useful usually. Any ways...here is today's.

Get rid of it already - but instead of dumping broken stuff or games they've outgrown, recycle their electronic waste. Here's where to dispose of it safely, or else refurbish and resell it for cash. Either way, you'll keep ewaste outta landfills. Just do it.

The Benefits

* Facing less trash. Americans buy millions of new gaming consoles every year, many to replace older models. Recycling consoles and controllers helps reduce the 2.5 million tons of ewaste we dump each year.
* Fewer toxins taking the plunge. Many popular game consoles tested positive for hazardous chems such as PVC, phthalates, and toxic flame retardants beryllium and bromine. Recycling keeps 'em off the ground and out of the water supply.
* Not swallowing up more resources. Reusing or recycling games, controllers, and consoles averts the need for new glass, metal, and plastic - energy-sucking processes that put a strain on the planet.
* Going for less packaging. No need to send plastic CD cases or game boxes to the landfill either - these companies accept the whole shebang.



Wanna Try?

* Best Buy - recycle your old video game consoles, DVD players, TVs, laptops, and other electronics at any store; service is mostly free, but $10 for bigger items (TVs, computers...), which BB offsets with a $10 gift card.
* Amazon Video Games Trade-In - this new offering from Amazon lets you send in your still-in-good-condition video games for an Amazon gift card, depending on the value of the game (free shipping).
* BuyMyTronics - scoop up cash or a donation to a charity of your choice for new, used, or broken electronics like iPods and PlayStations, plus the games and cords that go with 'em; example: $65 for a working Nintendo DSI.
* NextWorth - also offers cash for good-condition consoles and games (it'll accept and recycle broken stuff for free); example: $11 for a PlayStation 2.
* Gazelle - sell your video games, consoles, movies, and calculators; it pays shipping; example: $8 for a first-gen iPod Nano.
* Earth 911 - type in your zip code for a list of places in your area, with contact info and hours, that accept all things electronic.