Duke Hosts Green Drive-Thru
Durham motorists got the chance to recycle items through a drive-thru.
The staff from Duke University partnered with Creative Recycling of Durham to collect, pack and recycle electronics. The drive-thru recycling program lasted from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. By mid-afternoon, about 50 people showed up.
“Many, many of our electronics contain heavy metals,” said organizer Arwen Buchholz. “They go into the landfill and they’re crushed in the landfill, and those metals can leach out of the equipment into our landfill and our soil.” According to greenhome.com, more than 10 Million computers are dumped in landfills every year.
The Green Home Web site says:
“More than 700 chemicals are used to manufacture computers and their internal hardware is packed with cadmium, chromium, mercury and other heavy metals. But cathode ray tubes in monitors are the biggest problem.
The tubes contain lead, which protects viewers from radiation. When the tubes are pulverized, the lead - between 2.5 and 8 pounds of it per monitor - can seep through the landfill and into groundwater.”
Organizers at Duke say the event will likely be an annual event. They expect to have one every April in conjunction to Earth Day.
