Recycling at Staples

Last March, I wrote something about UPS Recycling and one place you can recycle it is at Staples. I received a comment from one of the readers that you need to bring a printout of the APC announcement to be able to avail the free UPS or battery recycling at Staples. They used to charge $10 per piece and the free recycling promotion ends on September 30, 2009.

I went to a local Staples store last week and found out that they also have recycling bins for cellphones, pager, handhelds and plastic bags.

Cellphone, pager or handheld recycling bin

Plastic bag recycling bin

While at Staples, you can also check out their reusable bags. Here's what it looks like.

UPS Recycling

I attended a virtual conference hosted by Information Week magazine a couple of weeks ago. The theme of the conference is "Green IT." I visited a virtual booth by American Power Corporation (APC), a worldwide company that makes UPS and found out that they also recycle.

So, what's a UPS? Some readers may ask. UPS stands for Uninterruptible Power Supply. This is a device that provides battery backup for computers in case there's a power failure. The UPS will give you some time (typically around 5 to 15 minutes) to be able to save anything that you are doing or until an auxiliary power (generator) is turned on.

APC placed this recycling link on their virtual booth and I had to check it out. I remember early in my career that we used APC branded UPS on one of our client sites.

On the website, they give people 4 options to trade, recharge, or recycle old UPS devices instead of throwing it away.

Option 1: Trade UPS - you can trade any brand of old UPS for a new one.

Option 2:Replacement Battery Cartridges - you can trade or replace your old APC UPS battery and they will dispose the old battery in an eco-friendly manner.

Option 3: Certified Pre-Owned - provides eco-friendly disposal of your old APC UPS device and you can buy an APC certified Pre-Owned UPS at a lower cost.

Option 4: Staples Eco-Easy Recycling Program - APC teamed up with Staples for recycling battery backups. You can bring your battery to any US Staples store for recycling. There's a $10 recycling fee (per piece) to cover the handling, transport, product disassembly and recyling.

Batteries, if improperly disposed, can harm the environment. Should you have any old UPS devices that are not being used, here's the recycling option for you.

Enjoy and happy recycling!