Post office offers free iPod, cell phone recycling
Recycling old cell phones or digital cameras just got a little easier. The U.S. Postal Service said this week that residents of Washington D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles and San Diego–among 10 U.S. cities that are part of a pilot program–can drop by their local post office and use a postage-paid envelope to send small electronics like iPods and personal digital assistants away for recycling. (Clover Technologies Group, the recipient, pays for the postage so that it can refurbish or recycle the goods.)
Companies like Green Citizen offer a similar service in cities like San Francisco for a small fee, but if the post office’s “mail back” program takes off, many more people could get rid of their electronics without harming the environment. The post office, which uses packages and envelopes that are made of nearly 100 percent recycled material, said it aims to launch the program nationally if it gets off the ground, so to speak.