While it certainly did not start the work-from-home trend, the coronavirus pandemic has doubtlessly accelerated it. What’s more, a growing number of companies such as Twitter, Shopify, Square, Box, Slack and many others have signaled that many (and in some cases all) employees can permanently remain at home even after the crisis ends.

The good news is that millions of people no longer have to face a tedious commute, or spend thousands of dollars a year in public transportation costs. However, the bad news is that these otherwise well-rested remote workers are realizing that over the years, their home has become a graveyard of electronic items that are either no longer wanted or needed.

“Mounting e-waste is yet another consequence of the coronavirus pandemic that has become a very widespread problem, and is especially burdensome for people who don’t have much storage space to begin with, such as those living in townhouses or apartments and condos,” commented a spokesperson from R2 Recycling, a nationwide electronics recycling leader. “Often, these extra items are crammed into a makeshift home office or piled up in a closet or bedroom. Not only are they unattractive, but they’re inconvenient and invasive."

Fortunately, people who are tired of battling e-waste for space supremacy have a simple, safe and smart solution: recycle them.

Do Your Part to Protect the Environment

“The most critical benefit of recycling electronic equipment is that it helps protect the environment,” commented a spokesperson from R2 Recycling. “E-waste contributes to 70 percent of the toxic waste in landfills. However, only around 12 percent of people recycle their electronic items, which invariably means that these items end up in one of two places: sitting around their home and taking up valuable space — not to mention being a potential fire hazard — or in a dump where they leak mercury, cadmium, lithium, mercury, barium, polybrominated flame retardants, and polyvinyl chloride into the groundwater system.”

Protect Your Privacy

There are two more critical reasons why simply dumping e-waste is a total, unequivocal mistake. The first reason is that in many states, dumping e-waste at the curb is illegal. For example, in New Jersey where R2 Recycling has its corporate headquarters, residents have been required to properly recycle e-waste since January 1, 2011. While many people comply with the law and are part of the solution, not everyone is on board. The second reason has to do with security; or rather, lack of security.

“Many people outside of the information security and IT field fail to realize that merely wiping a hard drive using conventional free or cheap apps are not going to stop cyber criminals from getting their hands on confidential, sensitive, personal or priority data,” commented a spokesperson from R2 Recycling. “That is why it’s absolutely essential for people to either drop off their e-waste directly at a facility like ours that performs military-grade hard disk wiping, or put their e-waste in a bin at a community center, mall, or other designated area, so that it will eventually be collected by a legitimate and licensed electronic recycling firm such as ours.”

Help Someone in Need

There is another key reason why people should make e-waste recycling a priority: it can give their broken, unwanted, or obsolete electronic equipment a chance to live again and serve someone else who cannot necessarily afford buying new — or for ecological reasons, simply prefers buying previously-owned items.

Most people these days look at their old CRT monitor sitting in a corner of the room or in a basement, and see nothing but a heavy eyesore. But that same monitor can be used by a nonprofit organization striving to make a difference in the community, or by an economically disadvantaged student or job trainee. Just because an item has reached its end-of-life for one person does not mean that it is no longer useful for another person, and in some cases many other people.

Trust Industry Professionals

With all of this in mind, R2 Recycling has an important message for anyone who has decided that it is finally time to say goodbye to their unwanted, broken, and obsolete e-waste: reach out to a legitimate e-waste recycling firm, and not someone who advertises on Craigslist or other similar site.

“If you just hand over your e-waste to someone who shows up at your door with a van or pick-up truck, you really have no idea where it’s going to end up — or if some of your data might still be on a hard drive or memory device,” commented a spokesperson from R2 Recycling. “Working with a reputable recycling firm avoids these risks and hazards, and it’s also extremely easy. People just drop off their items at a facility or they put them in a bin organized by their town or municipality. It’s very simple, safe and takes a load off your mind.”