There’s one less reason for residents of Lyme and Old Lyme too put off cleaning out the garage or basement and getting rid of unwanted electronic devices. Saturday, June 14, is one of four free collection days for consumer electronics by residents of towns in the Connecticut River Estuary Region. Made up of nine towns on either side of the lower Connecticut River and adjoining Connecticut shoreline, it is one of 15 planning regions established under state law.
The collection, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., is at the hazardous waste facility at Dump Road in Essex, one of four permanent facilities in the state. The activity is a public service of the Connecticut River Estuary Regional Planning Agency (CRERPA), the Estuary Region towns and Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority (CRRA), which bear the costs of handling and properly disposing of the items.
“We accept all sorts of computer components, from screens to hard drives, and printers,” said Janice Ehle-Meyer, recycling coordinator with CRERPA. “The important thing is to properly dispose of these pieces so they can be recycled and not end up in our environment.”
Electronic equipment often contains mercury, gold and other metals that can be reclaimed, she said, as well as plastics and materials that should be recycled. The facility will take apart the equipment, recycle, reuse or dispose of the components.
Ehle-Meyers assures residents that computer hard drives will be destroyed so no data or memory chips can be restored or retrieved.
The list of accepted items includes CD players, stereo players and speakers, radios, copiers, remote controls, answering machines, televisions and telephones. General household appliances, such as irons, are not considered electronic devises.
CRERPA also holds hazardous waste collections on selected Saturdays from April to November, she said, at the same collection point in Essex, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The next hazardous waste collection is set for Saturday, June 21.
Household hazardous wastes include cleaners; arts and crafts supplies; fluorescent light bulbs of any shape or size, which should be handled carefully because they contain mercury; photographic processing chemicals; full or partially-full aerosol containers and household batteries.
Automotive materials that are accepted include transmission and brake fluids, oil, gasoline and kerosene. Small propane cylinders are accepted as hazardous waste, but large BBQ grill-sized containers are not.
Most workshop materials, from wood preservatives and paint thinner to oil-based or lead-based paints, can be brought in for hazardous waste collections, she said. The one exception is latex paint, which should be air-dried and disposed of in the garbage.
Ehle-Meyer suggests one way to dry out latex paint is to slosh it into a trash bag, where it will dry more quickly than in the open paint can.
Residents also can bring swimming pool chemicals, pesticides and weed killers to a hazardous waste collection. All materials should be kept in their original containers and not mixed with other chemicals or solutions, she said.
Microwave ovens and air conditioner units are accepted at hazardous waste collections.
Residents of towns served by CRERPA need to bring a valid drivers license or similar proof of residency when bringing items to the collections, Ehle-Meyer said. She also is seeking a few volunteers to help during the scheduled collections.
For a full listing of acceptable items for both the consumer electronics collection this weekend and upcoming hazardous waste collections, go to www.crerpa.org or call 860-388-3497. CRERPA’s office is located in Saybrook Junction in Old Saybrook.