Reuse is the best "R"

So says the folks over at Low End Mac.

And it could be true. If items are reused indefinitely, then there's no need for trashing or recycling. They stay out of the waste stream forever.

I'm an Apple Mac geek. I love Macintosh computers, new and old, and currently own and maintain an iBook G4, an original iMac G3 Bondi Blue, an original clamshell iBook G3, and two Mac SE/30s, as well as a Newton MessagePad 110 and video iPod. Thanks to Recycling Jackson, I was also able to restore a strawberry iMac G3 for a friend.

The author of the Low End Mac column, owner and operator of eRecycler Online, noted

We are a growing recycling company in Texas and believe firmly in reuse. Towards that end we run over 100,000 online auctions a year; the proceeds help support the more expensive aspects of responsible recycling.

That's something we've found at our e-waste drives: people turn in perfectly useable computer equipment. "Sometimes things die and can't be fixed, but I'd rather see an old usable Mac given a new home than stripped for recycling," says Dan over at Low End Mac. Thankfully eBay is full of old Mac and PC stuff, and there are ways you can save old electronics like iPods.

Recycling Jackson will gladly take your e-waste. But if there's a chance your computer is still good, give it to someone who needs it, or to someone who can't afford a new computer on their own.

In our use-and-throw-away culture, good things can be said about people who don't automatically hit the "delete" key on their e-waste.


by Dave Lawrence, RJ vice president