The original language in California's landmark electronic waste bill included the words "FREE" and "CONVENIENT". In 2003, when SB20 legislation was drafted, it was intended to create a program whereby a consumer's experience with e-waste recycling echoed these words.
And while California has been leading the way in creating more opportunity for e-waste recycling and helping to divert millions of pounds of hazardous material from our landfills, the average consumer remains in the dark about how to recycle their e-waste. Meanwhile their e-waste remains stockpiled in closets, garages, and storage units. We started to wonder how such a tech-savvy society could be so far behind in knowing what to do with their electronics when they were on to the next newest, smallest, coolest gadget.
A year ago if you told someone they could recycle their e-waste the first question they would probably ask is, "what is e-waste?!" While today e-waste is slowly becoming a household term when people think about their outdated PC, their CRT television hidden in the closet, the 5 cell phones in their desk drawer, we are still a long way from making it common knowledge. I like to say that the inconvenient truth about e-waste is that it has been truly inconvenient for people to recycle it, let alone conceptualize.
That is why we created the GREENetwork. The GREENetwork is a collaborative effort between California e-waste collectors, cities and municipalities, manufacturers, retailers, and ASL Recycling to provide:
- a CONVENIENT INFRASTRUCTURE of drop-off locations for consumers and businesses;
- a CONSISTENT MESSAGE about what e-waste is and how to recycle it; and
- a FREE way to recycle according to state regulations and industry best practices.
GREENsters (that's what we call people who recycle at their local GREENspot) can not only rest assured that all their personal information will be destroyed when they go their local GREENspot, they can recycle when they want to because GREENspots are permanent destinations with normal business hours.
So, how do we make a GREENster out of everyone? The GREENetwork hosts an online interactive listing of all its GREENspot drop-off locations (www.aslgreenspot.com), to which we drives consumers and businesses through a continuous mass-media campaign and public outreach. Every month we interact with local media outlets to inform them of the newest GREENspots in their areas. Additionally, we partner with the largest local news radio station in the market to reach over a million people a week with one clear message.
Today, only seven months after it was launched to the public, the GREENetwork has 100 GREENspot e-waste drop-off locations in Northern California serving 96 percent of the households in the nine-county Bay Area within 10 miles of their home, and 89 percent within 5 miles. Since its inception, the GREENetwork has been able to divert almost 10 million pounds of e-waste from local landfills and helped to educate thousands of people about what e-waste is and how to recycle it. This month we will launch the GREENetwork in Southern California and so soon we will be serving the entire state.
Here are some catchy definitions to add to your handheld gadget:
GREENetwork (green spot) n. The newest, coolest, easiest way for everyone and their mother to recycle their old, "so-last-year" e-waste. Syn. Easy
GREENster: (tree-huhg-er) n. Trend-setting, tech-savvy, hipster who understands the importance of balancing consumerism with environmentalism. Is fully aware of where their GREENspot is and how to use it. Syn. Recycler
GREENspot (zip-kohd ) n. The place you go to get rid of all that old electronic equipment that doesn't work and is taking up valuable space in your closet, garage, desk drawer. Syn. FREE
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