The Goodwill of the Heartland will not accept televisions starting July 1st. The new policy affects Goodwill stores in Davenport, Bettendorf, Moline, Rock Island, Clinton and Burlington.
A Goodwill spokesperson says the company has spent more than $150,000 to recycle televisions after their recycling partner dropped the service to pay for recycling televisions. Also, prices on newer televisions have dropped dramatically and people are not buying older model TV'S anymore.
If you do have an older television you are encouraged to recycle it. Every month people in the Quad Cities recycle thousand of pounds of electronics. Televisions are one of the most popular items recycled.
"Why not recycle it? There are markets out there available for it that creates jobs to demanufacture these electronics and there's a market for the materials, so there's revenue," says Laura Berkley with the RICO Waste Management Agency.
If you live in Illinois, it's free to recycle televisions. A new law went into effect this year making it illegal to throw electronics away.
"Residents can be fined for it, your government can fined if they pick it up knowingly and the landfill can be fined," adds Berkley.
Money for the program comes from electronic manufacturers. Rock Island County residents can take televisions or other electronics to the Scott County Electronic Demanufacturing facility. You will need a valid photo ID.
"We know it's a burden on residents and we want to give them the opportunity to recycle responsibly without being a financial burden," says Berkley.
In Iowa, it's also illegal to throw electronics away. Scott County offers free e-waste recycling, but televisions are not free for everyone. In Davenport and Bettendorf, recycling televisions for free is part of curbside recycling. Recycling a television costs 20-cents per pound. There's a $15 flat fee for console or projection televisions.
"There's a lot of heavy metals and toxic materials that are in televisions," says Berkley, "You don't want those in the ground where they can leak into your water system."
For more information on e-recycling in Scott County and Rock Island County click here.
For more information on e-recycling in Clinton County click here.
For more information on e-recycling in Muscatine County click here.
For more information on e-recycling in Des Moines County click here.
