Sustainability commission invites community to tackle e-waste

Monday, March 19, 2012

The Greencastle Sustainability Commission invites the community to join a discussion, "Tackling the E-waste Problem," this Tuesday at 6 p.m. in City Hall.

Led by local experts, including those from Advantage Technology Solutions, NuGenesis, and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, the conversation will explore opportunities for local citizens to get involved in addressing the challenge of electronic waste.

Electronic waste is the fastest-growing category of municipal solid waste.

When disposed in landfills, used computers, cell phones and other such equipment can release lead, mercury and other toxins into the environment.

When exported to developing countries, e-waste is often improperly dumped or unsafely burned -- sometimes by children -- in order to recover valuable metals.

Properly recycling, on the other hand, can separate and reclaim component materials for reuse, preventing the release of heavy metals and other hazardous materials and reducing the need to mine such materials from the earth's crust.

Questions for discussion at Tuesday's meeting include: What are we doing locally to ensure proper collection and recycling of our community's electronic waste? Can we do better?

Tuesday's discussion is the quarterly meeting of Sustainable Greencastle, an open, community-wide association the Sustainability Commission convenes in pursuit of its mission: Connecting people and ideas for environmental solutions to strengthen our community, economy, culture and quality of life.

For more information, persons may contact sustainablegreencastle@gmail.com.

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