Thousands of New Yorkers Recycle Electronics at the City’s Safe Disposal Event in Queens

Nearly 4,000 New Yorkers carted, rolled, and carried their electronics, paint, and other hazardous waste to the city's <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/safedisposal">SAFE Disposal</a> recycling event in Queens this past Saturday. Organized by the <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/dsny/html/home/home.shtml">Department of Sanitation</a>, the event couldn't have come at a better time for people looking to get their spring cleaning done without having to dump their <a href="http://inhabitat.com/index.php?s=e-waste">e-waste </a>in landfills. Inhabitat was on the scene disposing of our own CRT TV, and we were astonished to see the hordes of people approaching the parking lot of St. John's University with their disposables. If you couldn't make it to the Queens event, don't worry. There are still three more events - in the Bronx, Staten Island, and Brooklyn - this spring. Read on for the details.

With over 3,700 people attending the Queens <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/safedisposal">SAFE Disposal</a> event, the parking lot at St. John's was quite the scene with everything from propane tanks to piles of computer monitors waiting to be sorted, packaged up and shipped off to the appropriate recycling center.

The piles of electronics and other materials were sorted in an organized fashion.

And packaged and carted away for recycling.

Despite the long line of hopeful recyclers stretching down the block, the Department of Sanitation staff worked quickly and effectively to take trash off of people's hands in an organized manner.

According to the DSNY's Waste Prevention Unit Deputy Director David Hirschler, materials collected will either be recycled, blended for fuel, or sent to licensed hazardous waste treatment facilities for safe disposal depending on the type of product.

Hopeful recyclers.

Electronics will be responsibly recycled or refurbished for reuse through a manufacturer-funded program, with the exception of cell phones, which will be donated to the Mayor's Office to combat domestic violence, through <a href="http://inhabitat.com/start-your-spring-cleaning-by-donating-your-old-phones-to-verizon-hopeline/">Hopeline® from Verizon</a>.

The DSNY will also take extra precautions when it comes to personal data and safety.

All data will be removed from electronics and cell phones before processing and unwanted medications will be managed by environmental police and incinerated to prevent accidental poisonings or entry into the water supply.

In Brooklyn, the Bronx or Staten Island and have electronics, paints, automotive parts or other household items that you're not sure how to get rid of?

There are 3 more SAFE Disposal events starting this Sunday, May 6, so be sure to check them out.

The Manhattan event already passed, but we recommend taking a short train or cab ride over to Brooklyn if you want to recycle your items there.

We applaud the city and the department of sanitation on their efforts.