Scrap money

To the untrained eye, PC Parts Inc.'s Harrisburg facilities might look like a computer graveyard.

Hard drives in giant bins, just waiting. Old PCs stacked on top of each other. The useless ones sit behind a building, gathering rainwater.

But the chosen ones live again, their electronic organs harvested to extend the life of a computer, printer or copier at another office, in some other city.

"It's the truest form of recycling," said Adam Crockett, vice president for sales and marketing of PC Parts, an aftermarket reseller of computers, printers and spare parts.

The company plans to become a full electronics recycler in the next couple months. It's waiting on a permit from the state Department of Environmental Protection.

The field of electronics recycling, de-manufacturing and resale of useful parts is growing, according to company executives and advocates.

PC Parts processed about 400 tons of used computers and printers so far this year, Crockett said. That's 50 percent more than in 2003. Most are purchased from wholesale recyclers.

The increase is for a simple reason: There are more electronics out there every year, particularly items like cell phones, computers and printers.

"A computer will be obsolete in a month or two depending on how the market goes," said Stephen Bailey, one of five co-founders of Free Geek Penn. "Where does all this obsolete stuff go? Well, Free Geek is here to make sure it doesn't go into a landfill."

Free Geek Penn is a nonprofit electronics recycler based in Ephrata, Lancaster County. It's a local chapter of a national nonprofit. Free Geek refurbishes old computers and donates them to churches, which send them to developing nations.

For businesses and nonprofits, reducing the waste from technology is a priority, said Jason Linnell, executive director of the National Center for Electronics Recycling. The group got its start three years ago to promote recycling programs around the country.

Private and public efforts to recycle electronics have grown over the past several years, Linnell said. Seventeen states have some form of a recycling program, up from just four states three years ago. Many states have bans on electronics in landfills.

"Pennsylvania has been fairly active on (recycling)," he said, providing grants for recycling events and permanent programs.

The private sector does its part, too.

"We see more programs from manufacturers in this area," he said.

Big companies, like Sony Corp. and Samsung, hold events from time to time. Sony's last event collected 4 million pounds of electronics in one weekend, Linnell said.

Although the big companies are joining the game to reclaim obsolete technology and reuse the parts, it's usually smaller operations that make up the bulk of the day-to-day electronics recycling, he said. Those small companies include computer-repair shops that decided to get into recycling as a side business.

PC Parts anticipates a lot of work breaking down computers and electronics to their basic metal parts and plastic parts once it ramps up its recycling business. That's why the company applied to the DEP for a de-manufacturing license.

"It's an important process because it helps us control toxic materials," said Charlie Young, a spokesman for the DEP.

Computers and monitors contain small amounts of hazardous materials, such as mercury, Linnell said. Flat-screen LCD monitors, for example, have tiny mercury bulbs similar to the fluorescent bulbs in your home or office. If broken in large quantities, those chemicals are hazardous, leaching into the ground and water supply.

Ten companies already have a state de-manufacturing license, Young said, with another seven - including PC Parts - applying for one. The DEP inspects facilities to ensure companies properly process hazardous materials.

Electronics recycling makes good environmental and business sense, Crockett said.

PC Parts used to buy all of its stock from recyclers, many located outside Central Pennsylvania. Some of those are collecting electronics from this area, transporting them to another center, sorting and selling them to other companies. A lot of fuel is used in that process, which is expensive and unnecessary. PC Parts wants to cut costs and environmental impact, Crockett said.

"If we're trying to save the earth, then it's not good that we're leaving a carbon footprint," he said.

In March, PC Parts stopped throwing electronics carcasses into the trash, which accounted for 350 tons of junk each year. Carcasses are all the stuff the company couldn't refurbish, cannibalize or sell for scrap.

PC Parts won't stop buying from other recyclers completely, Crockett said. Recycling Harrisburg's office waste will not supply enough used computers and printers to meet demand for aftermarket orders. It will help the company reduce the amount it spends.

"The more frugal the population," Crockett said, "the better our business."