Don’t trash your old TV…

Sian Hunt, 26 and lives in Cardiff, planned to get rid of her old computer and replace it with a laptop.
She said, "I’ve become more waste-aware over the last couple of years and try to recycle as much as possible at home. However, when I decided to upgrade my computer I was unsure of how to do without sending the old one to landfill.

"I got in touch with Waste Awareness Wales who referred me to Cardiff Council. It was the Council who told me about Computers in the Community Recycling based at computer shop, SFX Tech on Cowbridge Road.

"I took my computer to the shop and they were really helpful. I learned that none of the computers that are taken to the shop are sent to landfill – they are either recycled by being sent away to a processing plant where they are dismantled and shredded, or if the computer’s in good condition, it’s refurbished and resold.

"I handed my computer to the shop manager and because it was a relatively new model he said that they would wipe the data, reinstall Windows and then put it up for sale in the shop. It cost me £7.50 but I think that’s a minimal price to pay if it means that the computer will be given a second life and won’t be buried in a landfill site."

Computers in the Community Recycling is one of the largest recyclers and retailers of computers and IT related hardware in Cardiff and South Wales. The company has a ‘no landfill’ policy and offers data-wiping, refurbishment and ethical recycling of all computers. For more information, contact the shop on 02920 236759 or email www.citcwales.org.uk.

Read about The lifecycle of an unwanted fridge on the next page....