Ready to Haul That Old TV to the Curb? Read About New Recycling Act

Bulk pickup may be offered once a month by local haulers, but don't lug your TV or computer to the curb.

Old television sets, computer monitors and other electronics will no longer be collected as trash pickups and are required to be recycled.

Under the New Jersey Electronic Waste Management Act, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection banned curbside disposal of items described as “covered electronics” effective Jan. 1, 2011. These items include televisions, desktop and personal computers, computer monitors and laptop computers.

A representative of Waste Management suggested visiting www.earth911.org and finding a local recycling center. But Essex County residents have another alternative: you can dispose of unwanted electronics on Saturday, May 21, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., during Essex County Computer & Electronics Recycling Day, at the Essex County Fleet Maintenance Yard, 99 West Bradford Ave., in Cedar Grove.  

Items being accepted are computers, monitors, printers, fax machines, scanners, telecom equipment, speakers, televisions, keyboards, main frames, VCRs, stereos, DVD players, toasters, irons and cellular telephones. 

But first on Saturday, May 7, the county will host the spring Essex County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day to be held at the Essex County Fleet Maintenance Yard, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Materials being collected this weekend include pesticides and herbicides, paint thinners and solvents, oil-based paint, chemistry sets, barbecue propane tanks, pool chemicals, photo developing chemicals, household batteries, fluorescent light bulbs and ballasts, products that contain mercury, car batteries, home fire extinguishers, aerosol spray paint and automotive fluids. 

Essex County residents who are unable to bring electronic items to the Computer and Electronics Recycling Day can deliver their items free of charge to Advanced Recovery, Inc., 50 Grafton Ave., Newark. For more information about the vendor, call 973-485-9100.

In addition, electronics manufacturers and retailers are now required to offer e-waste management programs in which their consumers can bring old or unwanted “covered electronics.” Consumers should check directly with these businesses for information about their programs.

The Essex County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day and Essex County Computer and Electronics Recycling Day are for Essex County residents only. Residents are not charged when they bring materials, but they must provide proof of residency at the site. Commercial businesses may not drop off materials. For more information, please call the Essex County Utilities Authority at 973-792-9060.

Now that you know what to do tell your neighbor to kick that old TV off the curb – and back into the house until May 21.