Recycling aluminum cans, glass bottles and old newspapers has
become second nature for many South County residents. But when the
television color starts to fade or a computer is on its last legs,
many residents don’t know what to do.
Gilroy – Recycling aluminum cans, glass bottles and old newspapers has become second nature for many South County residents. But when the television color starts to fade or a computer is on its last legs, many residents don’t know what to do.
Televisions, monitors, computer hard drives and accessories can now be dropped off at a local recycling collection center – free of charge.
Marv Thomas opened Thomas Recycling on Mayock Road in May 2005 after reading about a state-sponsored program that covers the cost of recycling electronics safely. Known as the Electronics Waste Recycling Act, the law requires retailers to collect $6 to $10 fees when consumers purchase computer monitors and televisions.
The money goes to the state Board of Equalization, which distributes the fees to recycling and collection agencies that dismantle the items.
Thomas, a retired 74-year-old who used to run Thomas Appliances, had long wondered how to dispose of electronics.
“When I was at Thomas Appliance, we would pull circuit boards that cost $350 out of a washing machine,” Thomas said. “Nobody would recycle them.”
Tossing old electronics into a landfill doesn’t just take up space, but is also hazardous to the environment. The cathode ray tubes found in televisions and computer monitors are especially dangerous.
“The main thing is a large screen can have up to 12 pounds of lead,” Thomas said.
Improper disposal of electronic waste can lead to respiratory illnesses, skin infections and stomach diseases, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
“I knew this stuff should not go in the landfills,” Thomas said.
Thomas’ center serves as a drop-off point for Santa Clara and San Benito County residents who want to discard electronic equipment. He also works with local retailers, schools and city offices that need to recycle items. He will pick up monitors and TVs up to 20 inches if customers call to set up an appointment. He has worked with the city to recycle some of their old electronics and has even picked up stray TVs abandoned in alleys.
A storage space at the end of parking lot of Mayock Road serves as Thomas’ office. While he doesn’t have regular hours, customers can drop off items as long as they are labeled properly with a name, address and phone number until 4pm on weekdays or noon on weekends.
Thomas does not dismantle the items himself, but he works with Asset Services and Liquidators of San Jose and ECS Refining of Santa Clara, two recycling centers that are experienced with taking apart electronics. The recycling companies receive 48 cents per pound to cover the expense of recycling and Thomas receives 20 cents of that for collecting the items.
“My main costs are gasoline and a little bit of advertising,” Thomas said.
Thomas Recycling is one of the few places that collects electronics for free. South Valley Disposal and Recycling will collect items for a fee if customers place a special request.
Phil Couchee, general manager of South Valley Disposal and Recycling suggested that customers look around for collectors who send their items to reputable recyclers. This is to ensure that the items are properly dismantled locally, rather than shipped overseas to developing countries. A report from Greenpeace International released Aug. 17 found high levels of toxic contamination at electronic waste recycling centers in southern China and New Delhi, India. The United States and other developed nations have exported electronics to be recycled there in the past.
“They can ask the particular vendor where their end product ends up,” Couchee said. “The person collecting it just collects it and they turn it over to someone who has a larger recycling center.”
Local computer recycling and reuse companies
Thomas Recycling
305 Maycock Road
846-7288
Metech Inc. LLC
6200 Engle Way
848-3050
Best Buy
7011 Camino Arroyo
847-0325
Western Recycling
16290 Railroad, Morgan Hill
779-1781
