Electronic Wast Collection Huge Success

The Papio Missouri River Natural Resources District (PMRNRD) recently organized a series of electronic waste collections at USDA Service Centers in four northeast Nebraska counties. More than 342 households and 63 businesses participated in these collections by disposing of 63,000 pounds of electronic waste including computers, monitors, televisions and microwaves.  The Burt county collection was staffed by PMRNRD employees and volunteers from the Nebraska Loess Hills RC&D Council. Tekamah Herman High School’s Future Business Leaders of America organized a pre-collection so area residents and businesses could drop off items the week before the event.  On collection day these students then loaded the equipment for disposal at the collection.

“These collections were a huge success,” said Deb Ward, PMRNRD Program Assistant for Burt county. “The contractors had to rent an additional truck in the middle of a collection to handle the volume of material we received.  It was clear from the age of many of the televisions and monitors that people had been storing some of these items for years. This collection provided a convenient opportunity to recycle more than 31 tons of material while properly disposing of components containing mercury, arsenic, lead, cadmium and other hazardous materials. The NRD thanks everyone who participated with a special thank-you to Linda Farrens of Tekamah Herman High School for organizing the FBLA collection.”  For more information about PMRNRD programs or events contact Deb Ward at (402)374-1920 ext. 101.