The DeKalb County Solid Waste Management Program and the DeKalb County Farm Bureau are teaming up to help rid residents of old electronics.
Oct. 1 marks the Sixth Semiannual Electronics Recycling Collection sponsored by the organizations. This service is offered at no cost for DeKalb residents.
A press release stated the collection will begin Saturday at 8:30 a.m. and end at 1 p.m. (or earlier if the trailer space is full) at the DeKalb County Health Department's Parking lot at 2550 N. Annie Glidden Road. Photo ID is required to donate items.
Items can range from cell phones to VCRs. Residents are also encouraged to bring in used household batteries and compact fluorescent bulbs for disposal and/or recycling, according to the release.
"Last year we had approximately 779 cars attend the electronics collection and each car averaged 80 to 100 pounds of electronics," said Christel Springmire, solid waste coordinator for the DeKalb County Health Department.
The release stated residents can only bring in two monitors each, but there are no other limits to the amount of items brought.
Car batteries, microwave ovens or other oversized items will not be accepted. Greg Maurice, director of the DeKalb County Health Department's Environmental Health Division, also said to tie loose cords with a rubber band. While this is not a requirement, it does help with the sorting process.
The Kirkland Lions Club and Boy Scout Troops 5 and 33 will volunteer for the event as they have in the past. Troops 5 and 33 will help carry items out of cars and into bins where they will be sorted and loaded into a trailer.
"It's good for the kids to see how products get broken down and reused," said Troop 33 Scoutmaster Cliff Golden.
Springmire said all non-working items or parts will be melted down and recycled into new parts made out of plastic and metal.
"It is a great event for the public, and it also helps save landfill space," Maurice said.
Anything refurbishable will be sold by ATR, Inc., Maurice said. Sales of refurbished items will go toward the cost of hosting the free event.
According to the Dekalb County Health Department's website, Electronics Recycling Collections are held twice a year in fall and spring. The website also states Goodwill or Best Buy will properly dispose of old electronics, but a fee may apply.
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