Articles Posted in General Law Topics

Trash law for depositing electronics in household receptacles has changed, making a change in the protocol for throw away electronics in Indiana.  Since the   National Safety Council expects that close to 250 million computers in five years and 130 million mobile phones annually will be discarded, the concern about hazardous materials entering the environment from being deposited in landfills or in incinerators has risen.  Electronics contain hazardous materials, such as lead, mercury, and hexavalent chromium that when released into the air may cause a variety of diseases like cancer, particularly for high risk people.

For this reason, electronics are now forbidden from being deposited into the trash in Indiana.  Instead, residents may take their computers, television sets, and mobile phones to local collection locations and solid waste management facilities. There are also many manufacturers who are happy to take back your unwanted electronics.  These options offer a method to properly recycle electronics and reduce the risk that harmful containments will be released into the air, ground and water supply.

While computer monitors, computers, hard drives, scanners, keyboards, televisions and the like may emit harmful chemicals when placed in trash, recycled electronics provide useful materials for mankind. In 1998 alone, over 112 million pounds of recyclable materials were acquired from unwanted electronics. These materials include steel, glass and plastic.