THE HASSON COMPANY, FREE GEEK AND SWARTZ MOVING PRESENTS

Reuse and Recycle Day: May 31st

HELP KEEP POISONS OUT OF OUR ENVIRONMENT.

     PLEASE JOIN US IN RECYCLING RESPONSIBLY ON
     MAY 31ST AT ONE OF OUR TWO LOCATIONS BETWEEN
     10 AM AND 2 PM.

     EAST METRO                       WEST METRO
     12809 SE 93rd Avenue         9755 SW Barnes Road
     Clackamas, OR 97015          Portland, OR 97225

WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR COMPUTER WHEN IT IS RECYCLED?

Any computer equipment, working or not, can be donated to Free Geek; they will repair and reuse what computers they can and recycle what is beyond repair. Items that can be recycled are CRT monitors, flat screen monitors, CPUs, mice, keyboards, cords, desktop printers, scanners speakers and hard drives. Computers that are deemed obsolete or broken are separated into their basic components; plastics, steel, aluminum, motors, wires, cables, copper, circuit boards, processors, monitors and terminals. Free Geek then finds a local industrial recycler to process the materials. They work with companies that handle the materials in an environmentally responsible manner. For more information visit www.FreeGeek.org/recycle.

WHAT HAPPENS TO DONATED HARD DRIVES?

Free Geek takes the utmost care to ensure complete destruction of all user data. Hard drives that meet specifications for reuse are removed from their systems and wiped clean using government software. The hard drive is overwritten 3 times using a destructive write which ensures that ALL data on the drive is completely destroyed and totally unrecoverable. Hard drives that are below specifications for reuse are physically destroyed on site. Optical media such as cd-rw discs are physically destroyed as soon as they are received.

WHAT IS A CRT MONITOR AND WHY DOES IT COST TEN DOLLARS TO RECYCLE?

CRT stands for Cathode Ray Tube and is an evacuated glass envelope used to display an image on the screen of the monitor. The evacuated glass envelope is large, deep, heavy, and relatively fragile. It weighs up to 28 pounds, nine pounds of which is lead. Free Geek uses utmost care in making sure that the lead is drained safely and kept out of our landfills. CRT monitors are the only technological product that cannot be refurbished and sent back into the community. The development of imaging technologies without these disadvantages has caused CRTs to be largely displaced by flat screen displays, and other technologies.

WHO IS FREE GEEK?

Free Geek is a 501(c)(3) not for profit community organization that recycles used technology to provide computers, education, internet access and job skills training to those in need in exchange for community service. In the eight years since its formation, Free Geek has recycled over 1,500 tons of electronic scrap and refurbished over 15,000 computer systems that are now in use by individuals and organizations in the community. Free Geek does most of this work with volunteers (at any given time, about 500 are active). The volunteers disassemble the donated equipment and test the components, which are either recycled as electronic scrap or recycled into refurbished systems.

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS:

www.hasson.com/green

www.freegeek.org

www.swartz.com

Hasson Agent Green Real Estate Tips

Over 2.5 million tons of carpet is discarded in the U.S. each year.

Replacing sections with carpeting tiles can significantly lower this figure. If 10,000 people purchased carpeting by the tile, it would prevent 163,000 pounds of unused carpet from ending up in landfills.

Reusing building materials decreases demand for virgin materials and landfill space.

Vintage materials are often less expensive and more unique. If 10,000 people recycled building materials, the amount of energy saved would be equal to the energy produced by 78 million gallons of gasoline—enough to drive an SUV around the earth 55,000 times.

Applying for a green mortgage increases your buying power.

Energy-efficient construction and retrofitting not only improve the resale value of your home, but can also increase your home-buying power. Lenders treat expected energy savings as income, allowing borrowers to qualify for larger mortgages. If 10,000 people converted to Energy Star-qualified homes, the oil saved each year would fill 6,000 hot tubs.

Having a plant about every 10 square feet in your house can provide great air filtration.

Plants such as philodendrons and peace lilies do an excellent job of absorbing airborne pollutants and are easy to keep. If 10,000 people unplugged their 24-hour electric air purifiers in favor of air-filtering plants for one year, the electricity saved could power a 29-story building for a month.