Eco Pregnancy and Baby

Cameras, cellphones, computers and video equipment help you capture precious moments in your newborn’s life. But upgrading to new electronics may mean adding more e-waste to the environment.

Some simple steps to take before buying new products:

• Check to see if the manufacturer of your old electronics offers a recycling program and look for electronics that carry the Energy Star label (energystar.gov), which means they are energy-efficient.
• Give old but still-functioning electronics a second life before pulling the plug. Ebay’s Rethink program (rethink.ebay.com) provides resources for selling used products. Resources such as Earth 911 (earth911.org or 877-EARTH911) provide community recycling, donation and disposal options. Just enter your location into the search box on their website to find a list of recycling resources in your city.
• Reduce e-waste by refurbishing your current electronics, passing them along to friends or donating them to a good cause. Trade or barter working electronics for other used products at SwapThing (swapthing.com).

Green Disk boxes

• To protect old intellectual property before recycling old computers, peripherals and accessories, GreenDisk (greendisk.com, 800-305-3475) provides secure, audited disposal of your private data, recovers reusable components and recycles the rest. They’ll send you collection boxes specially made for easy disposal of electronic products such as old computers and hard drives, printers and empty printer cartridges, CD’s, DVDs, Zip disks, cell phones, rechargeable batteries, and even computer cables, cords, chips and boards.

Once you’ve found an environmentally responsible way to dispose of your old electronics, you’ll probably want to go shopping for new models made with cleaner and greener technology. Start by looking for the Energy Star label, which means the product runs on less energy than similar products (so you’ll also lower your electric bills). And while green technology is still in its infancy, keep an eye out for electronics companies that are actively seeking new ways to create cutting edge electronics with fewer toxic chemicals, which will also make them easier to recycle.

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Tags: eco-friendly electronics, Green Home, green pregnancy

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