Monthly Electronic Waste Collection to Start Saturday at Transfer Station

Residents will now have the chance to dispose of their electronic waste once a month instead of waiting for the town’s bi-annual disposal day or Medfield Green’s Collection Day.

Starting this weekend, the Transfer Station will offer e-waste collection on the first Saturday of every month from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“Essentially all e-waste is collected free of charge, except for televisions and computer monitors,” said Taurin Bellavance of Electronix ReDux in Norfolk. “Offsite data destruction will be performed on any computers or devices holding personal information.”

The cost for disposing of a CRT television 20 inches or smaller is $10 each; 21 to 30 inches is $15 each; 31 inches or larger is $20 each. A television projection and console is $25 per unit. LCD monitor or television (any size) is $5 per unit. CRT monitors (any size) are $5 per unit for proper disposal.

Superintendent of the Department of Public Works Ken Feeney said the program could save the town approximately $4,000 a year as it will discontinue its bi-annual collection day and will no longer have to pay to dispose of the electronic waste. 

 “I think it’s a plus-plus, win-win for everybody,” said Feeney. “I think it’s good for the taxpayers, it’s convenient and people don’t have to hold onto their electronics for six months.” 

While ER will kick off its monthly program on Saturday, Aug. 6, the company participated in this year’s Medfield Green Collection Day, which Bellavance called “a great success.”

“We collected over 6,000 pounds of electronic waste and were able to raise almost $400 in donations for the group,” he said.

Steve Catanese chaired this year’s Medfield Green Collection Day.

“People really liked the things they [Electronix ReDux] could take –television sets, batteries, printers, scanners, faxes, cell phones, computers,” said Catanese.  “The problem is it [Medfield Green’s Collection Day] was one day a year … and the town’s annual television collection was two times a year in the fall and spring so you had to wait six months to dispose of it.”

Catanese said the other issue was the town was losing money on its bi-annual collection because the cost they were charging was less than the cost to dispose of the electronics.

“The cost was more than what they were taking in,” he said.

In addition, people were also illegally dumping (at the risk of a $100 fine) electronics at the transfer station for which the town ultimately had to pay for disposal.  

“The town has had issues with people illegally dumping e-waste, televisions especially, at the transfer station in the past,” said Bellavance. “These items contain hazardous waste and need to be dealt with appropriately in a manner that costs money and that the town was not equipped for. Our company is able to properly manage this waste and divert it from our landfills while saving the town both the cost of managing the program. Our company also assumes the health and environmental liabilities associated with processing through a transfer of custody.” 

The hope is that this service will give residents the opportunity every month to dispose of e-waste properly.

Bellavance said most people are aware they should not dispose of e-waste with their regular garbage, but they may not necessarily know where or how to go about recycling it. 

“The result is either e-waste that is disposed of improperly, potentially ending up in a landfill, or stacked away in a corner of the basement to collect dust until a proper outlet is found,” said Bellavance. “The service we are providing both eliminates the toxic pollution potential from the e-waste and gives residents the proper outlet they are looking for."

Bellavance said most e-waste is de-manufactured and recycled into raw materials for use in the manufacturing of new products, noting that “any time an item meets specific criteria, including age and condition, it may be repurposed and find a second life … RAM is probably the most commonly upgraded internal component thanks to its low cost-to-benefit ratio.”

Components from the internal memory stick can be removed and live on for many more years in the same form, but in less high-tech equipment such as home appliances, toys, etc., said Bellavance.

Electronic waste can be dropped off on the first Saturday of every month during Transfer Station hours, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. If a resident is not able to get to the Transfer Station at that time, they can drop off their waste at Electronix ReDux located off Route 1A in Norfolk, or they can schedule a pickup through www.electronixredux.com or by calling (508) 384-1112.

According to its website, Electronix ReDux collects personal computers (notebook, laptop), computer monitors (CRT and LCD), all computer components, printers, scanners, faxes, printer cartridges and toners, television sets (CRT, LCD and plasma), home and auto radios and stereos, entertainment systems, all cables and wires, projectors, satellites and receivers, all telephones and cell phones, media waste (CDs, floppy disks), servers (terminal, client, etc.), telecommunications equipment, printed circuit boards (PCBs), rechargeable batteries, and all consumer electronics.