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Guest Column
Even dedicated hoarders must agree that their old, unused laptops don't serve any useful purpose - other than gathering dust. And saving old magazines and newspapers because they contain useful articles is a waste of much needed space. After all, we all turn to the Internet for the latest information. In our consumer-oriented society, the useful life of electronics and clothing keeps getting shorter and shorter, and the need to dispose of them correctly becomes more pressing. And although storage is always a solution...wouldn't it be more practical, not to mention cost-effective, to get rid of whatever we no longer use? Discarding lightly worn clothing is clearly a waste - donating it makes much more sense. Discarding last year's cellular phone or our unwanted computers is more complex. The fact is that electronics, although perfectly safe to use, contain hazardous materials that, when discarded, could be released into the environment. So whether they work or not, electronics should be recycled. But once you've made your piles of unwanted stuff, comes the next question: what to do with them? Sanitation to the rescue! In fact, the Department has a way for you to responsibly dispose of these unwanted items. The department, with the assistance of the Lower East Side Ecology Center, Goodwill Industries and Con Edison, is sponsoring its "Spring 2007 Electronics Recycling and Clothing Donation Events " at Sanitation facilities, which will accept your lightly worn clothing and linens, as well as your unwanted or broken electronics (limited to five pieces per person) from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. In addition, citywide facilities will offer city residents free compost (a natural soil enhancer) for their gardens and plants. (Only vehicles registered to New York City addresses can pick up free compost. No commercial vehicles will be Continued on page 39 allowed). In Brooklyn you can recycle your electronics, donate your lightly worn clothing and even get free compost! +Spring Creek Composting Facility , 12720 Flatlands Avenue (near the intersection with Fountain Avenue, close to the Belt Parkway and the Brooklyn/queens border) For further information and other locations citywide, you may call 311 or visit www.nyc.gov/sanitation. And if you need motivation to get started with your spring-cleaning...remember that you don't want to end up like the Collyer brothers. Homer and Langley Collyer, champion hoarders of all time, barricaded themselves behind piles of junk in their New York mansion. When they passed away in the 1940s, the police needed 18 days to remove over 100 tons of junk from their home. In the process, they found all type of objects, from broken baby carriages, to rusty bicycles, to hundreds and hundreds of old newspapers. To put it simply, the brothers had never thrown anything away. Just think... recycling your unwanted clothing and electronics...the satisfaction of doing the right thing - gaining extra space for your new stuff...priceless!
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