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Newark Electronic Waste Collection Event Celebrates Earth Day(Marketwire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) NEWARK, NJ -- (Marketwired) -- 04/17/14 -- This Earth Day, Newark residents are encouraged to empty their cluttered closets, drawers and garages and bring their old electronics to a free e-waste collection event on Tuesday, April 22. The event will take place at Peter Francisco Park, located between Edison Place and Ferry Street near Penn Station in Newark's Ironbound District from 7:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. The event, a partnership between private companies and public organizations, is being hosted by the Ironbound Business Improvement District (IBID); Covanta, a world leading sustainable waste management company, and Panasonic; in cooperation with the City of Newark and Urban Renewal Corporation, a local not-for-profit emergency housing and social services organization. The collection is an effort to increase the amount of electronics that are recycled, in turn reducing the amount of electronics discarded in regular household trash. Many electronics contain a wide variety of materials that can be recycled, which reduces energy use and the need to mine more raw materials from the earth. In addition, many electronics contain components which can be hazardous in the waste stream and should not be thrown away. Collected materials will be recycled at Covanta's electronic waste processing facility, an R2 and e-Stewards certified operation, and at Urban Renewal's Training & Development Center located in the greater Newark area and at their R2 facility in Philadelphia. Both entities provide data destruction security measures, however it is recommended that residents wipe all data from their devices prior to dropping them off. Newark Mayor Luis A. Quintana commented, "My administration is committed to taking a leadership role in creating a greener and more environmentally sustainable City of Newark. We are working to strengthen our Environmental Commission and the Newark Sustainability Office and are proud of the partnerships we have developed with the public, private, and non-profit community to encourage environmentally-friendly programs, initiatives, and activities. We urge all residents to remember to take old electronics to responsible local recyclers and not to throw them into the trash. This advances our commitment to going Zero Waste. We want to thank all the partners involved in helping to get e-waste out of the trash today and look forward to continuing those partnerships. Whether we build green buildings, develop urban farms, recycle waste, or plant trees, we are empowering and uniting our entire community at all levels to protect the environment of the City and planet that we all call our home." "The businesses of the Ironbound District have been longtime supporters of the city's mission to make Newark one of the nation's greenest cities, and the April celebration of Earth Day makes this the perfect time to host this collection event," noted Seth A. Grossman, the IBID's Executive Director. "We are pleased to be a partner in this event that will help make Newark a cleaner and healthier place to live, work, or visit by providing a convenient and easy location to drop off your e-waste." Items that can be collected include, but are not limited to: computer laptops and desktops, monitors, mice, keyboards and peripherals, CD/VCR/DVD players, small home office copiers/fax machines, MP3 players, photo/video cameras, and more. Prohibited items include hazardous wastes/liquids, loose batteries, toner cartridges, fluorescent lamps, and appliances like washers, dryers, stoves, air conditioners, refrigerators, and space heaters. "It's important for people to know that disposing of electronics properly really makes a difference for the environment. It is part of the four Rs we champion at Covanta -- reduce, reuse, recycle, and recover energy from waste," said Hank Asher, Business Manager for the Covanta Essex Energy-from-Waste facility in Newark. "As a member of the Newark community, Covanta is pleased to be working with these organizations on Earth Day and we look forward to future collaborations that make a difference for the community and the environment." "Panasonic is committed to building a nation-wide electronic product collection and recycling infrastructure. We currently support over 1,800 collection sites and events across the country and recycled over 44 million pounds of e-waste in 2013," said David Thompson, Director, Corporate Environmental Department, Panasonic. "We are also a proud participant in U.S. EPA's Sustainable Materials Management Electronics Challenge Program, with 100% of used electronics recyclers certified to rigorous third-party recycling standards. Panasonic is pleased to partner with leading community organizations in Newark and Covanta to offer this collection event on Earth Day." Lane Jacobs, CEO of Urban Renewal shared, "This event is an opportunity to help Urban Renewal with its mission of reclaiming resources, restoring lives, and giving back to the community. Urban Renewal serves over 3,000 people a year including homeless, veterans and offenders, and our unique job training program provides computer technology skills that help folks successfully compete for jobs. Your e-waste will support our programs and make a difference in people's lives." For Newark residents and business owners that need assistance in delivering their electronic waste to the drop off location, arrangements can be made beforehand by contacting the IBID. To schedule a drop off, or for information about pick up options on April 22 for your e-waste, contact the IBID's Operations Manager, Chris Bernardo, at 973-482-2200 or via email at [email protected]. For more information about other programs and services provided by the Ironbound Business Improvement District, visit GoIronbound.com or follow the district on Facebook at Facebook.com/goironbound. About CovantaCovanta is a world leader in providing sustainable waste and energy solutions. The Company's 45 Energy-from-Waste facilities provide communities and businesses around the world with environmentally sound solid waste disposal by using waste to generate clean, renewable energy. Annually, Covanta's modern Energy-from-Waste facilities safely and securely convert approximately 20 million tons of waste into clean, renewable electricity to power one million homes and recycle over 440,000 tons of metal. Energy-from-Waste facilities reduce greenhouse gases, complement recycling and are a critical component to sustainable solid waste management. For more information, visit www.covanta.com. About Urban RenewalUrban Renewal offers responsible e-waste collection for residents, businesses, organizations, and schools. Urban Renewal provides free pick-up in the region and can help you organize a collection event. Proceeds support Urban Renewal's housing and job training programs. For more information, or to schedule a pick-up, contact Lane Jacobs at Urban Renewal at 973-632-9343 or visit urbanrenewal.org About Panasonic Corporation of North AmericaPanasonic Corporation of North America provides a broad line of digital and other electronics products and solutions for consumer, business and industrial use. The company is the principal North American subsidiary of Osaka, Japan-based Panasonic Corporation and the hub of Panasonic's U.S. branding, marketing, sales, service and R&D operations. In Interbrand's 2013 Annual "Best Global Green Brands" report, the Panasonic brand rose to number four, the highest ranked electronics brand in the report (http://bit.ly/19WFSpu). As part of continuing sustainability efforts, Panasonic Corporation of North America relocated its headquarters to a new facility, built to meet LEED certification standards, adjacent to Newark Penn Station in Newark, NJ. Learn more about Panasonic at www.panasonic.com. Source: Covanta |