As an avid consumer of electronics, I try very hard to dispose of it properly. Of course that wasn’t always the case. Back in my PC building days I would get rid of defective components by simply tossing them in the trash, not giving a second thought to the toxic materials they contained or where they might end up. But now that we live in a more Green conscious world, I make a concerted effort to either sell, donate or recycle all of my e-waste. Fortunately since moving to Macs, I seem to generate a lot less of it.

All of which makes the segment that aired tonight on the 11/9/08 edition of
60 Minutes all the more disconcerting. Please watch (note that there is a brief ad at the beginning).

While we all struggle to do our part, it’s really disheartening to see our best intentions literally go to waste.

If you receive a flyer about dropping off e-waste, do some research on the company first. We received such a flyer recently from Zarc, LLC based in California. After reviewing their website, it appears they recycle at least some of their CRTs through the Tung Tai Group, in Hong Kong.

Not very reassuring, is it?