By MELISSA HART
PLATTSBURGH — With all the emphasis on going green, it makes sense to have a directory that lists places that collect unwanted things — from old cell phones to exercise equipment and appliances.
A couple of years ago, the League of Women Voters of the Plattsburgh Area began compiling such a directory. The result, North Country Green Pages, hit the streets around Thanksgiving. In addition to listing items and the various businesses and nonprofits that accept them, the guide also contains a list of area transfer and convenience station locations and hours of operation.
The first printing of the Green Pages was underwritten by Casella Waste Systems, and about 5,000 copies were in the first run, said Barbara Landes, chairwoman of the league's environmental committee. The publication is also available on the league's Web site: www.plattsburgh.ny.lwvnet.org.
According to Landes, the group's goal was to find a way to divert items that may be re-used or recycled away from ending up in the landfill. Landes, who calls the Green Pages "a source for responsible recycling," hopes to bring awareness to consumer goods, such as electronics, which are now readily accepted at many places.
"Cell phones and other things that weren't being collected locally are now able to be recycled locally," she said.
For instance, Staples collects cell phones, electronics, ink cartridges and rechargeable batteries at the Plattsburgh store.
According to company representative Mark Crowley, nationally Staples recycled more than 22 million ink and toner cartridges in 2008 and an estimated 50 million cartridges in 2009. Besides reducing waste to landfills and saving resources, retail ink recyclers receive $3 in Staples Rewards for any brand of ink or toner cartridges returned to stores for up to 10 cartridges each month, Crowley said.
Total Computer Supply is a company that has made recycling its business. For the past 11 years, the computer business, located on Route 9 in Plattsburgh, has accepted electronic typewriters, cell phones, fax machines, computers and all computer-related products free of charge, said owner Jay Letts.
Letts estimates his business moves a half-million pounds of e-waste a year. Once he collects it, the item goes to a smelter, where the raw components are separated, removed and re-used.
The rise in electronic devices has provided Letts with steady business that has grown through word-of-mouth, he said.
"Clinton County tends to be fairly responsible when it comes to e-waste. Businesses and consumers alike," he said.
That sense of responsibility is what drives his business and Letts would like to see the Green Pages guide become something people use.
For the first go around, league members distributed the Green Pages at libraries, town halls and city and county office buildings, Landes said. Now, group members are restocking and adding new sites: coffee shops and the North Country Food Co-op, in addition to expanding circulation into outlying areas: Keeseville, Mooers and Champlain.
Additional copies will be handed out at the league's Earth Day fair, which has been held the past three years at the Champlain Centre mall, Landes said.
The league has plans to eventually update and reissue the Green Pages, said Plattsburgh League President Myra Decker. Already, members have been made aware of other recycling venues, such as Aubuchon hardware stores, which accept florescent light bulbs.
