Electronics recycling events set for October

It’s time again to look around the cabinets, closets, garage and basement to see if there are any unwanted electronic items collecting dust that could be put to better use. 

On Thursday, Oct. 18, and Friday, Oct. 19, members of the UMass Chan Medical School and UMass Memorial Medical Center community are encouraged to bring in those unused electronic items for collection at two recycling events. On Oct.18, the collection will take place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Pine Tree parking lot on the Worcester campus. On Oct. 19, the event will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the parking lot at the UMass Chan Medical School facility at 333 South St. in Shrewsbury. 

“This has been a very successful program and we appreciate the community’s participation,” said Melissa Lucas, sustainability and energy manager. “We’ve seen a tremendous amount of material diverted from landfills and reused in productive ways through these events.” 

The electronics recycling program is free to members of the school and hospital community, with the exception of a 35-cents-per-pound fee for television sets with picture tubes. People need to show a valid identification badge, either from the school or the clinical system, to participate. 

On collection day, almost any item with an electric power cord or battery pack will be accepted. Common items collected at these events in the past include: 

• air conditioners, dehumidifiers, radios, small household appliances, microwave ovens, televisions, speakers 
• batteries, battery-operated tools 
• cell phones, device chargers, telephones 
• circuit boards, computers (laptops and towers), modems, monitors, desktop scanners, fax machines, printers, routers, servers, switches
• holiday lights, other lighting fixtures (no bulbs) 
• medical equipment, fire alarm components 
• ballasts, wire 

The recycling events are sponsored by the UMass Chan Sustainability Committee and Northeast Material Handling of Lowell. The first campus electronic recycling event was held during the UMass Chan Earth Day celebration in 2011, and since then, the twice-a-year events have collected 48,450 pounds of electronic items from the school and hospital community.

For more information about the event contact: GrowingGreen@umassmed.edu.