Last modified: Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Advisory: IU E-Waste Collection Days this week in Bloomington and South Bend
IU Bloomington event to include donation and salvaging of items that can be re-used
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 8, 2012
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Plans are in place for Indiana University's fourth Electronic Waste Collection Days, which will take place this Friday and Saturday, May 11 and 12, at IU Bloomington and IU South Bend.
For the first time, the IU Bloomington event will include an opportunity to find new homes for equipment that is still in working condition. Serve IT, an IU-based service organization, will refurbish reusable items for donation or resale to benefit local nonprofit groups.
E-Waste Collection Days, initiated by IU in 2009, provides individuals, businesses and institutions a way to dispose of out-of-date electronic equipment for free and in a safe and environmentally responsible manner. All the equipment that is dropped off for disposal will be recycled and kept out of landfills.
Reusing and recycling computer equipment and electronic waste conserves resources, reduces energy consumption from mining and manufacturing, and helps keep potentially toxic materials, such as lead, nickel, cadmium and mercury, out of the environment.
Serve IT will collect reusable equipment Friday and Saturday in the parking lot of IU's Harry Gladstein Fieldhouse. Items will be donated to community organizations or made available for purchase at the August 2012 Hoosier to Hoosier community sale, a fundraiser for United Way of Monroe County and Habitat for Humanity. Equipment that can't effectively be re-used will be recycled.
Potentially useful equipment should be less than five years old, be in relatively good shape and may not be owned by IU. A list of examples is available at serveit.soic.indiana.edu. Serve IT will erase data from any computer equipment it receives; however, it is recommended that owners remove any sensitive information before donating the equipment.
Serve IT is staffed by IU students, faculty and employees and exists to assist local nonprofit organizations with technology services. Based in and operated by the School of Informatics and Computing at IU Bloomington, it incorporates service learning into technology-related projects.
Events this weekend include:
- IU Bloomington E-Waste Collection Days -- 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday for schools, businesses and nonprofits, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday for the general public; location is the Purple parking lot north of Memorial Stadium; site host is IU Athletics.
- IU South Bend E-Waste Recycling Fest -- 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday for businesses and organizations, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday for the general public; location is parking lot at Vine and 20th streets.
- Serve IT Reusable Equipment Donation -- 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Harry Gladstein Fieldhouse parking lot.
Sponsors include the IU Office of Sustainability and City of Bloomington at IU Bloomington and the Center for a Sustainable Future at IU South Bend.
Indiana University departments and managers of IU-owned equipment must follow university guidelines for disposing of surplus property, which are available online.
For more information, including lists of items that are acceptable, visit ewaste.indiana.edu. For information specific to IU South Bend visit www.iusb.edu/csfuture/ewaste.php.
Schools, nonprofits and businesses should register in advance at indiana.poweron.com.
