Reuse or Recycle?

All residents in Québec can recycle their old electronics FREE OF CHARGE through one of EPRA-Québec’s authorized drop-off points.

EPRA-Québec encourages the public to prioritize the reuse of electronics that have not yet reached the end of their useful life. Therefore, if your electronic items are not at the end of their useful life, we recommend that you explore reuse opportunities including donating them to family members, friends or local charities. There are also reuse organizations, but you should review these carefully before choosing that option.

While reuse of electronic equipment can be an effective way to manage unused electronics prior to end-of-life recycling, there are still environmental issues that need to be considered. Before getting rid of your old equipment, ensure that the reuse option that you are considering provides for an equivalent level of protection for the environment and human health. For instance:

• Ensure that your equipment will not be landfilled or shipped overseas.

• Ensure that the reuse organization has a policy for ensuring the security of user’s information such as that contained on disk drives.

• Ensure that the organization uses a provincially approved recycler for any unusable parts or equipment.

9 Questions to ask a Reuse Organization

1. Where do reuse / refurbished products go?

2. How do you handle scrap materials?

3. Do you ship any products, parts, or scrap materials overseas?

4. Can you guarantee that this product will not end up in a landfill?

5. What do you do with hazardous waste such as spent batteries and mercury bulbs?

6. What health and safety precautions do you take for your employees that handle potentially hazardous materials inside of electronic equipment?

7. Do you have environmental liability insurance?

8. Do you have worker’s compensation coverage?

9. What do you do to protect my personal information contained on the computer hard drive?