A small appliance recycling program - Unplugged - is now underway in British Columbia.
Instead of disposing of small appliances by tossing them in the garbage, they can be taken to drop-off locations around the province.
The local drop-off location for appliances is at the Salvation Army Thrift Store at 774 Columbia St. Items are accepted at no charge.
Unplugged's 112 depots accept a range of appliances including blenders, coffee pots, microwaves, bathroom scales, irons, hair dryers, vacuum cleaners, clocks, toasters and electrical toothbrushes.
It's estimated about two million products were getting tossed into the garbage before the program was implemented last fall.
The Unplugged website, www.unpluggedrecy cling.ca, includes a list of all the items accepted for recycling.
Categories include kitchen countertop (motorized); kitchen countertop (heating); kitchen countertop (heating - coffee/tea); large countertop microwave; small countertop microwave; time measurement; weight measurement; garment care; air treatment; desk and tabletop fans; large floor cleaning; and small floor cleaning.
Collection sites are located in a variety of places, including bottle depots, thrift stores and municipal sites. Once recycled, the items will find their way back into the marketplace, although it may not be as small appliances.
By diverting small appliances from the land-fills, Unplugged will help reduce pollution, save energy and protect the environment.
Unplugged, a non-prof-it program, is fully funded by a recycling fee that's now being applied to new products.
The recycling fee, which covers all program costs, ranges from 25 cents (for very small items such as air fresheners) to $2.25 (for blenders and toasters) to a high of $10 for a large countertop microwave.
See www.unplugged recycling.ca for more.
