Allen & York (A&Y) recruitment specialists working for the UK based Natural and Built Environment sectors have announced adjustments to their existing waste policy to promote sustainability. The company has recognised the importance of going green at their Dorset offices. Envirowise, a government sponsored initiative designed to provide practical environmental advice for businesses, was consulted for its guidance in identifying and improving the company's environmental profile. Among the changes in policy at A&Y is the implementation of a "wormery", designed to significantly reduce composted waste by up to 50%. In addition, A&Y has produced a "Green Office Guide" designed to ... Full Story

Mobile phone companies are trying hard to spread the word about recycling programmes. Virgin Mobile recently found a way to reach the masses through a concert. The Virgin Mobile Festival's theme for 2008 was Environmentalism, a topic near and dear to the recycler's heart. The event was held earlier this month at the Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. Throughout the festival grounds recycling, compost and garbage bins were readily available to promote the cause. Signs around the stage reported the vast number of tonnes of garbage were recycled from the 2007 show, thereby diverting unnecessary waste from going to landfill. ... Full Story

Did you know that you can get money for your old mobile phone? You can. There are many companies out there willing to pay for old handsets, either to sell or donate to developing countries or to recycle for components and valuable materials. Millions of phones are binned every year in the UK, many of which would not see a landfill if the owners knew that they were throwing away money. Mobile phone recycling company Community Fonebak, recently stated that mobile phones tend to be replaced every 18 months or so, although manufacturers claim the units can function for up to a ... Full Story

Ink and toner cartridges are mysterious items. That is, many people don't give a second thought to what happens to them after they've outlived their usefulness - almost as if they will magically disappear. You might ask yourself: where do those old cartridges go? The sad answer is that a great number of used cartridges end up being binned. That means that the ink or toner cartridge will either be incinerated or wind up in landfill where it poses a danger of leaching toxic chemicals into the ground or the atmosphere. While there are a growing number of recycling programmes designed to ... Full Story

As the world becomes more involved in recycling and reusing, the remanufacturing industry has become an integral part of the recycling industry. Many people are unaware of the remanufacturing sector and what it's all about. However, this "invisible" entity is responsible for employing over 50,000 people and contributes approximately £5 billion per year to the UK's economy. In a nutshell, remanufacturing companies take used items, remove valuable components and materials, and then turn around and manufacture them into a new product. The products produced can be the same as the original item or something completely different. Often times, the new products ... Full Story

Since 2004, the UK tech company Computer Planet has been known as one of "the most accredited and leading suppliers" of computers and accessories. In addition to offering stellar service and support, Computer Planet also takes pride in being able to assist East African schools with education and technology. Education has always been a focal point for enabling economic and social development in Africa. To this end, Computer Planet has become involved in meeting the needs of technological needs in developing countries. According to the Computer Planet website: "Achieving universal primary education is, for example, one of the United Nations' eight Millennium Development Goals ... Full Story

Swiss-based firm Citron SA, one of the largest battery recycling firms across Europe, has joined forces with Hampshire-based firm Loddon Recycling. Together, the companies will make battery recycling a simpler and more convenient process. Loddon chose to partner with Citron after executives saw the recycling facility first hand. They were also impressed by Citron's claims of 100% efficiency. The partnership will help the UK comply more easily with the EU Battery Directive, promoting the collection of portable batteries. The scheme, known as Citron Recycle, will promote a "UK-wide collection network" developed by Loddon. Under the scheme, batteries will be transported to the ... Full Story

There are numerous charities and organisations worldwide that will take used electronics in order to raise funds for the cause. One of those organisations is Computers For Schools Program (CFSP), Chicago based non-profit group that accepts donated computers, refurbishes them, and then gives them to schools in need. Paul Roberts works for CFSP, and is always trying to educate those who may be likely to toss out their old CPUS, monitors or peripherals because the machines don't seem to have any value left. More often than not, that thought is untrue. Even if the computer is not able to be ... Full Story

San Francisco advocacy group, Electronics TakeBack Coalition, states that less than 13% of electronics are recycled each year. The rest get dumped into landfills. Environmentalists struggle to educate because electronics gear contains a number of toxic substances that could escape into the environment if incinerated. Two examples: A tube TV contains as almost eight pounds of lead while flat screens contain mercury. Some companies have stepped up and accepted the recycling challenge put before them by environmental groups. For example, Apple offers a 10% discount on a new iPod if you send in your old one; Dell accepts old computers and accessories ... Full Story

Those who are highly enthusiastic about recycling are urging consumers to recycle more. In fact, in some areas of the country residents are already being fined for not recycling enough. Higher levels of recycling are encouraging, however they also indicate high levels of consumption. If people precycled, that is, if they reduced their purchases to only essential and useful items, they would generate less waste and need to recycle far less. Precycling is a new concept centred around the idea of preventing waste build up by reducing spending and making smart consumer choices. The concept is important because even recycling contributes to ... Full Story

Wouldn’t it be great if there was a company to take all your obsolete and redundant hardware? You wouldn’t have to worry about disposing of them or putting them away in trash cans. This is just what CircuitUK has done in UK and now moved over to a new territory by starting its JUST Recycle IT company in Australia. They have been in the IT recycling market for nearly 10 years and have worked with almost all the top companies who give them free reign over all waste products. If your office is thinking about replacing all the old computers ... Full Story

In New England, people are being educated on how fun recycling can be through a different approach. Many everyday items can be made from plastic bottles that have been recycled. All these are interesting ways of making new products from materials that we use at home on a daily basis and have thoughtfully recycled. If we take extra five minutes everyday to sort through our garbage and put them in “recyclable” and “non recyclable” bins, it would be far easier to process them. In this town, people in every household have taken it upon themselves to promote recycling and make ... Full Story