Here's a great post from Mashable on the future of recycling. The article goes over 4 techniques that will be utilized to improve the rate of recycling:

- RFID

- Pay as you throw

- Strategic placement of recycling bins

- Gasification

How to Erase your Hard drive instructions

BACKUP YOUR DATA, COPY ANY PERSONAL DATA THAT YOU WISH TO SAVE TO A CD OR REMOVABLE STORAGE DEVICE SUCH AS AN EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE OR FLASH DRIVE, ONCE YOU RUN THE PROGRAM YOUR DATA WILL NOT BE RECOVERABLE.

1. Download Kill Disk software - http://software.lsoft.net/killdisk.zip

2. "Save" the zipped file onto your computer

3. Right click the folder and select "extract all"

4. At the next screen, note the location of where the folder will be saved to, and click "extract"

5. A new window should show up on your screen showing the contents of the folder

6. Run the "Kill disk" software (it's free to use)

7. After the setup as completed, identify an ISO compatible CD/DVD Burner

a. Open the start menu

b. go to all programs>Active@ KillDisk FREE Suite

c. click on bootable disk creators

d. click on bootable DOS CD Disk Creator

8. Make sure you have a blank CD in your drive, and select "burn ISO"

9. Once burned, place the CD into the computer that you wish to wipe the hard drive

10. Reboot the computer

11. Let the computer boot to the CD-ROM Drive.  To do this will will need to press the F12 function key for the computer to boot to CD.  Press F12 on the keyboard while the computer is just turning on at the BIOS Boot Screen, this will bring up a boot menu so that you can select CD ROM as the boot device

12. Use your down arrow key to highlight KillDisk, press enter

13. Press enter at the red box

14. Use the down arrow key to select your hard drive, in this picture it is shown as ST340014A

15. Press F10

16. At the gray screen press F10 again to confirm the wipe

17. At the red box, type “erase-all-data”

18. The wiping has begun, you should now see a progress bar at the bottom of the screen

We're excited about the new RET3 website.  Coming soon.

Just found this great site - which is called "Campaign for recycling".

Nationwide laws and recycling locations.

Lots more where these came from - the movement continues.

Here's a great article you should read - on digital dumping grounds and e-waste.

The researchers have identified four categories of e-waste:

Unintentional waste data, created as a side effect or by-product of a process, with no purpose.

Used data, which has served its purposes and is no longer useful to the owner.

Degraded data, which has deteriorated to a point where it is no longer useful.

Unwanted data, which was never useful to the computer user in the first place.

There are very few economical and environmentally responsible solutions for getting rid of old computers, LCD monitors and other electronic waste. But, now you can rely on Possitivity’s E-Waste Recycling Service to provide an environmentally responsible solution.  We guarantee:

100% global, no-landfill policy

Hard drives data-wiped for free

All materials safely recycled back into a manufacturing stream

The main RET3 drop off center is located at:

1814 East 40th Street. 
8:00AM-3:00PM Monday-Friday.

The building is located between Chester Ave. and Payne in the Midtown corridor. The entrance is located at the rear of the building.

Acceptable items

The following items are acceptable equipment that RET3 can accept:

• Personal computers

• Laptop computers

• Servers & storage devices

• Mainframe equipment

• Monitors (CRT and LCD)

• Docking stations

• Floppy drives

• DVD/CD burners

• Circuit boards

• Scanners

• Copiers

• Printers

• Cables, wires, extension cords

• Digital cameras

• Cellular phones

• DVD players

• VCRs
  

• Network & telecommunications equipment

TV sets are NOT acceptable!