I already recycle my toner cartridges and cell phones. What’s different about Commit to Zero™?

Unfortunately most recycling programs are just that, recycling only. By sending electronic waste straight to recycling you are keeping it from entering a landfill however you have failed in protecting natural resources (like oil) and you have caused unnecessary carbon emissions as the product cannot be reused. In fact you have actually broken EPA waste hierarchy protocol. Environmental guidelines for electronic waste is that it must be presented to a reuse program before being sent to recycling. Although you may not want to reuse that product there’s a good chance someone else does. Commit to Zero programs are able to direct up to 70% of a company’s waste towards reuse.

How much will it cost my company to implement a Commit to Zero™ program?

Although the fees vary it is certainly possible to implement the basic program for no charge. With the basic program you will receive collection containers, prepaid shipping, and full reclamation and processing of all your portable electronic and imaging waste.

What’s the difference between the Basic Commit to Zero™ program and the Full Service program?

With the full service program, in addition to collection containers, prepaid shipping, full reclamation and processing, you receive $10 in store credits for each empty imaging (ink and toner) cartridge, access to US Renewable’s member-only wholesale buying club, a printer maintenance program, reclamation and recycling certificates, and e-waste management certification.

How much waste do I have to have before the program makes sense?

Commit to Zero™ programs are perfect for organizations with as few as five people in one location or fifty thousand in offices throughout the country.

Is it true I receive $10 for empty toner cartridges and other portable electronic items?

Yes! US Renewable’s cartridge and electronic waste credit program is the highest paying in the country. Full Service Commit to Zero™ participants who collect and process their cartridges, cell phones, Blackberries, MP3 players, cameras, laptops, and other portable electronics through the program receive $10 in store credits for every item.

What’s the damage to the environment from electronic waste?

Electronic waste is one of the most damaging forms of waste possible. Billions of pounds of it end up in landfills every year. In the next twenty years landfills could become so clogged with this waste that the residual damage will be irreversible.

Commit to Zero™ has three distinct environmental goals – reduce landfill waste, protect and preserve natural resource, and prevent harmful emissions from being released into the air. Those who send electronic waste back to a manufacturers recycling program or bring it back to a store recycling programs are only achieving one objective and in fact are actually causing natural resources to be depleted and harmful emissions to be released into the air. How? By sending it straight to recycling you are preventing it from being reused. Up to seventy percent of an organization’s electronic waste can be reused by someone, somewhere. If a product is reused it saves up to a gallon of oil, .01 metric tons of harmful carbon emissions that would have been used and released to produce a new one.

If you are sending any of your electronic waste directly to a recycling program we kindly ask you to stop and do what’s best for the environment. Get it into a Commit to Zero™ program and give it the change to be reused.