Four Ways to Deal with Your Electronics Waste

is the season to keep
propping up the consumer electronics industry and swap out your old
phones and tablets and computers in favor of slightly better,
slightly more expensive new versions. Whether it an iPad 2
replacing an iPad, an iPhone 4s replacing an iPhone 4, or whether
you just received an Kindle Fire tablet and simply hate it , chances
are you have some outdated electronics on your hands. And you e
not alone: ??in a new report from the analysts at
Pike Research found that the amount of end-of- life
electronics-better known as e-waste-around the globe will grow from
6 million tons in 2010 to nearly 15 million tons by 2025. That a
lot of obsolete-or just old -gadgets.

And we can simply toss
those phones and electronics into the trash-or at least we
shouldn . The lead, mercury and other toxic materials in
electronics can leak from landfills, threatening groundwater
supplies. But you can throw them in the recycling bin either-few
municipal waste firms can recycle electronics. So what should you
do then?

1)
Re-gift them: If you e a younger child, you e
experienced this for yourself: the hand-me- down wardrobe. It goes
against our constant itch for the new, but there no reason why
you couldn hand that iPhone 3S off to another member of your
extended family or friend network. Not everyone needs Siri (and
let face it-she sort of the worst). Our consumer electronics
may be designed for obsolescence, but that doesn mean you need to
follow the plan . And if you can find anyone you know to take your
old gadgets …

2)
Donate them: Ever heard of the digital gap? Do your part
in closing it by donating your gadgets and computers to
charity-after you e wiped your data from the device. (In fact,
that probably a good idea if you e regifting a computer to a
relative, unless you want your 8-year-old cousin to have easy
access to your web surfing record. ) As the Los Angeles
Times reports, one of the best places to find worthy
recipients is EBay Rethink Initiative, which includes a list of
organizations that can make use of your leftover electronics. Among
them is Cell Phones for Soldiers, which provides gently used phones
for deployed and returning troops. I l be sending the group my
two-year-old iPhone 3S.

3) Be
capitalistic: Of course, maybe you like to cash in your
old gadgets for actual cash, as opposed to karma. You can sell your
old phones and computers on any auction or classified site, but if
that too much work, you can use a digital middleman. The company
will quote a price, and you can either send the gadget directly to
them, or trade it in at a Target superstore-a useful option if
you e dealing with a large desktop or similar-sized device. You
can also try Gazelle, where I see that my iPhone 3S would have
fetched around $ 100. Again, do not forget to erase your
data.

4)
Recycle it: This is trickier than it sounds because not
every e-waste recycler is doing it right. Far too many old phones,
TVs and computers are shipped overseas to countries like China,
India or Ghana, where the very poor do the dangerous — and
unprotected — work of dismantling electronics to get at valuable
trace metals. So you need to ensure that the company promising to
recycle your e-waste is doing it right. This page from the
Environmental Protection Agency is a good place to start, with a
list of reputable recyclers from around the country. Scores of
electronics retailers and manufacturers like
BestBuy and HP now sponsor convenient recycling programs as
well-including, if belatedly, Apple, which offers
gift cards for phones and computers that still have monetary
value.

Despite all the options,
only about 20% of Americans make an effort to keep
their outmoded electronics out of the landfill. For 2012, you can
resolve to do better .