pilipiliĀž»­

 

Green thumbs up

- December 10, 2008

Information Technology Services's Robin WestĀ poses with monitors that will be reused. (Court Milley Photo)

Dalhousie has launched a new electronics recycling program, dubbed ā€œe-recycling.ā€

Since October, Dalhousie departments have been able to arrange for pick-up of electronic productsā€” such as old or broken desktop computers, monitors, laptops, printers and televisionsā€” that no longer have reuse potential. The service is offered free of charge and is activated by filling out an .

Once the material is collected, Information Technology Services (ITS) will take care of erasing the memory to ensure privacy. Then, the old and out-of-date materials will be transported to a depot where metals, glass and plastic are separated and recycled into new products.

The e-recycling program is Dalhousie's sixth recycling program. Dalhousie also recycles fine paper, newsprint, corrugated cardboard, beverage containers and batteries.Ā 

Rochelle Owen, Dalhousieā€™s Director of Sustainability, applauds the initiative.

ā€œTo move towards greater sustainability, the amount of waste we produce must be minimized. All processes in the life-cycle of a product need to be made as efficient as possible,ā€ she said.

Dalā€™s e-recycling program was given a big green thumbs up by The Hourā€™s George Strombolopoulos on a recent show. Mr. Strombolopoulos is spearheading CBCā€™s One Million Acts of Green; the idea behind the campaign is that small acts add up and create a big difference. He congratulated Dalhousie for removing obsolete technology from the waste stream.

One Million Acts of Green also singled out pilipiliĀž»­ā€™s recent campus light bulb exchange. The student-led initiative oversaw the distribution of 1,000 energy efficient CFL light bulbs.

Dalhousieā€™s efforts to conserve energy expended by electronics have included replacing old computers in labs with new energy-saving computers. This new technology burns 40 per cent less energy than the previous computers, amounting to a savings of 400,000 kilowatt hoursā€” enough energy to run 44 average houses for a year.

Programs created by the Office of Sustainability have fostered interest and concern all over campus. In addition to the electronics recycling program, pilipiliĀž»­ is working to incorporate sustainability concepts and criteria into all major planning, assessment, policy, reporting and communications products and procedures.

ā€œOutstanding lectures, courses and programs explore a wide range of environment and sustainability-related issues that contribute to a new way of thinking,ā€ says Ms. Owen.