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Safe E-Waste Disposal Coming to North Taranaki

Wednesday 18 April 2012, 4:06PM

By New Plymouth District Council

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TARANAKI

A solution is at hand for those who want to dispose of electronic equipment without poisoning the environment.

A permanent e-waste collection depot has been established at Whitaker Civil Engineering’s Corbett Road site, north of Bell Block, and is subsidised by the Council to reduce the cost to customers.

It will open its doors to the public on Saturday 5 May, operating on Saturday mornings for a one-year trial.

“We know from previous one-off e-day collections that the public want an environmentally responsible way to dispose of their electronics, and now we have one that will operate throughout the year,” says Manager Water and Wastes Brent Manning.

“Unlike the e-days, this facility is user pays. The benefit is that all materials that can be reused will be recycled, and all material will be disposed of properly.”

The e-waste collection depot is a joint initiative between NPDC and Whitaker Civil Engineering.

Managing Director Chris Whitaker says the company is glad to offer this new service to the public.

“We’re in the waste management industry as we operate the Colson Road Landfill and also manage the waste in Tararua. With this e-waste collection depot we’re expanding our services to the community and helping keep e-waste out of the landfill,” he says.

E-waste is one of the fastest growing categories of hazardous waste in the world. The situation is exacerbated by rapid technology change, low initial cost and planned obsolescence.

While the depot is user pays, the Council is subsidising the cost of disposing TVs and computer monitors. “These are the more expensive items to dispose of and they’re the most popular items in homes, so we want to encourage people to take them to the depot rather than just throw them out as rubbish,” says Mr Manning.

The price list (inc. GST) is:

  • Computer monitors: CRT screens $10.00; flatscreens $6.00.
  • Desktop and laptop computers: $5.00.
  • TVs: $15.00.
  • DVDs and video players: $6.00.
  • Fax machines: $11.50.
  • Microwaves: $11.50.
  • Network equipment: $4.00.
  • Photocopiers (small): $46.00.
  • Printers: $11.50.
  • Servers: $5.00.
  • Stereos $6.00.
  • Miscellaneous: $5.00

 

The depot has been established as part of the RCN e-Cycle national network: An environmental project established as a partnership between the RCN group and the Community Recycling Network, with funding from the Waste Minimisation Fund administered by the Ministry for the Environment, to help tackle the escalating problem of
e-waste.

Similar facilities are to open in Stratford and South Taranaki.