Holiday memories from my childhood include my father in the living room patiently (and sometimes not so patiently) laying out strands of lights to see what we had that was functional. Those large bulb, energy suckers did indeed warm an entire room and would even burn small fingers if you got too close. I think about that each year and I have now inherited that ritual with much small and more energy efficient strands for our tree.
I don’t remember what my father did with each year’s rejects, but I fear that yet sit in the bottom of a landfill somewhere south of Atlanta. But as the saying goes, “when we know better, we do better.” While there are a plethora of options for us, we do have a few places we can go to responsibly take care of our eWaste.
Check out this list of local resources below to see where you might be able to take eWaste you find around your home this holiday season:
- ReWorx Recycling accepts electronics, metals and other recyclables ensuring eco-friendly disposal. Items accepted include but are not limited to computers, gaming consoles, home audio equipment, old exercise equipment and even lawn and garden tools!
- Ecycle Atlanta can help you with disposal of materials that might contain sensitive information. See a list of all their items here.
- Home Depot locations run an “Eco Options Light Trade In” during the Christmas season.
- HolidayLeds.com is a mail-in program that recycles Christmas lights all year long.
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