What happens to your discarded computer or other electronic device?

A couple of weeks ago, I attended a seminar for lawyers and learned that it’s standard practice for law offices to replace computers every three years.

This evening, I read "High-Tech Trash - toxic components of discarded electronics are ending up overseas" in the January, 2008 issue of the National Geographic Magazine.

I wonder if my colleagues think about what happens to their old computers. I keep my computers well beyond the recommended three years. I also make sure that when I have to discard a computer or other electronic device, I deliver it a “recycle roundup” specifically for electronic devices. The next time I’ll ask what happens to the items they are collecting.

There are several links included along with the National Geographic article, including a photo gallery, Test Your Knowledge of E-Waste, and E-Cycling Etiquette- How to Help.

(photo: Discarded shells of computers and monitors float in a drainage ditch channel in Accra, Ghana: National Geographic)