Plugged in to e-waste

NOOSA residents dropped off more than four tonnes of e-waste in two days at the Council’s National Recycling Week collection point.
Waste education officer Emma Menzies said diverting the four tonnes of material from landfill had been a great result.
Ms Menzies said recycling rather than dumping e-waste helps to keep mercury, lead and other hazardous material out of the environment.
Many residents who dropped items off at the two-day collection site didn’t realise the council accepted e-waste for recycling, free of charge, Ms Menzies said.
She said that the council intends to maintain the e-waste service in the future.
Residents filled eight large wire cages with old televisions, computers, printers, scanners and other IT equipment at the National Recycling Week drop-off.
“Used electronic equipment contains finite resources such as copper, aluminium, nickel and zinc. Recycling your e-waste ensures these resources are reused,” Ms Menzies said.
Plastic from old electronic equipment is recycled into new outdoor furniture, plant pots, even car dashboards. Any data left on a computer device is destroyed through the recycling process.
“Residents can rest assured their data is safe if they do the right thing and recycle their old computers,” Ms Menzies said.
Residents can drop off e-waste for free at the Noosa Resource and Recovery Centre, Eumundi-Noosa Road, seven days a week from 7am-5pm.
It can also be dropped off at the Transfer Stations at Cooroy from Monday to Saturday, 8am-1pm, and at Pomona from Friday to Sunday, 8am-1pm.
“If we can divert over four tonnes of e-waste from landfill in just two days, image how much we can save in a year by making use of these collection points,” Ms Menzies said.
For more information about e-waste and recycling, and to download a free A-Z Guide to Recycling, visit the council’s website at www.noosa.qld.gov.au/waste-recycling.