DNRP > SWD > About SWD > Environmental Programs > WasteWise > Projects

Projects

Program staff help develop projects to meet our WasteWise goals. Current projects are detailed below.

Free Cell Phone Recycling Program

This project supports the County’s Zero Waste of Resources initiative and is designed for all King County employees.

Wireless Alliance, is the recycling contractor and accepts all cell phones, chargers, batteries and accessories for free. Wireless Alliance tests each unit, removes all the data from reusable phones, recycles the non-working phones and refurbishes the working phones.

Here is how you can get rid of your old, outdated, unusable phone:

• Contact your telecom coordinator – the person in charge of ordering cell phones and pagers for your section or Julie Mitchell online or by phone at 206-296-4465. If you are not sure who your telecom coordinator is, contact Denise.Pollitt@kingcounty.gov for more direction
• All telecom coordinators have collection boxes to put the phone(s) in.
• If the telecom coordinator does not have a box, a regular file box can be used with the Wireless Alliance’s pre–printed label on the box. If there are no boxes or labels available, have the coordinator contact us

Other notes:

• Do not send the phones to Surplus.
• All phones, batteries, chargers and accessories are accepted.
• Non-working phones and "bag" phones are accepted.

For telecom coordinators:

An instruction sheet (PDF, 51 K) will answer most of your questions about what products are accepted, how to pack the boxes, and how to get a pick up. Postage is free.

Other ways to recycle cell phones, in addition to using the Wireless Alliance:

• Nextel users please use the Sprint Buy Back Program. Information on how to participate is located at http://www.sprintbuyback.com.
• You can recycle cell phones through the electronics recycling contract with Total Reclaim/Ecolights Northwest. This option is convenient if your agency is sending electronics to Ecolights Northwest and you would like to add in some cell phones. Your agency does need to pay for this service.

If you need more details about this contract, contact us online or call Julie Mitchell at 206-296-4465.

Recycling Personal Cell Phones

King County employees and the general public can view a comprehensive list of cell phone recycling options on the "What do I do with...?" Web site. In general, most cell phone retailers offer recycling.

Salvaged Building Materials Contract

Responding to an employee suggestion, the King County WasteWise Program set up an agreement in June 2004 with the RE Store (external link), a non-profit used building materials store in Seattle. Under this agreement, the RE Store can pick up reusable building materials that would otherwise go to the landfill from King County internal construction, renovation and demolition projects. In November, 2005, this contract was amended to allow the RE Store to also do minor deconstruction or "active salvaging" when it picks up materials from King County.

Although no money changes hands between King County and the RE Store, this agreement is an official County contract. If you are a King County employee and your project has left-over building materials and you would like to use this contract (PDF, 138 K), please contact Pat Finn, Seattle field manager for the RE Store, at 206-423-4537 or patf@re-store.org. If you need more details about this contract, please contact Tom Watson at 206-296-4481, or submit your question online.

Computer and Electronics Recycling

King County has a contract with Total Reclaim/Ecolights Northwest, a Take it Back Network-certified recycler, which allows county agencies to recycle a wide range of computer and electronics equipment for a fee. Contact Yvone at Ecolights Northwest (206-388-5197) for more information.

Note: This contract is to be used for non-working equipment. Working equipment should be sent to Surplus (206-263-6263 or surplus@kingcounty.gov) for reuse.

Toner Cartridge Contract

King County has a contract with Keeney's Office Plus for the supply and delivery of remanufactured and new toner cartridges. See King County's Environmental Purchasing Program Web site for more information or call Patti Oquist at 206-263-4275 or Ovita Bonadie at 206-684-1055.

Office Supply Exchange Areas

Office Supply Exchange SWD has several reusable office supplies areas.

Office supply exchange areas are spaces that have been designated for the collection of used office supplies such as binders, folders, envelopes, in-boxes and small office equipment. The seventh floor at the King Street Center, in the Department of Natural Resources and Parks is a great example. This floor, which has more than 150 employees, has four separate office supply exchange areas.

To request a large quantity of used supplies (for example, 40 binders), contact Tom Watson at 206-296-4481 or submit your request online.

Direct One-on-One Assistance from WasteWise

The WasteWise Team can visit your agency, do research, follow up with you and do whatever it takes to help you improve recycling and waste prevention. For more information on one-on-one assistance and visits, contact Alexandra Thompson at 206-296-8454 or submit your request online.

Battery Recycling

Contact the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation (RBRC) (external link) to receive a free postage-paid battery collection box. This program is for rechargeable batteries only, such as the batteries commonly used in cell phones, pagers and laptops. For additional information on battery recycling, contact Tom Watson at 206-296-4481 or submit your request online.

Polystyrene Packing Peanuts Collection for Reuse

WasteWise at Work The Solid Waste Division recycles styrofoam peanuts as part of the WasteWise program.

Polystyrene, or Styrofoam™, packing peanuts can be collected for reuse. At the King Street Center, packing peanuts are collected on Floors 2 through 8. Collection barrels, located in the freight elevator lobby on each floor, were acquired for free through the Industrial Materials Exchange (IMEX), which is operated by King County. Custodians bring full bags of peanuts to a cart in the garage of the King Street Center. When the cart is full, a local mail services company collects the peanuts for reuse. If you would like to initiate peanut recycling at your office, floor or building, contact Tom Watson at 206-296-4481 or submit your request online.

Field Trips and Special Events

Sea-Dru-Nar, the Seattle Drug and Narcotics Treatment Center (external), is a non-profit organization and has the recycling contract with King County Facilities Management to collect paper and other recyclables at county buildings. In June 2003, King County WasteWise sponsored a tour of the Sea-Dru-Nar recycling processing plant in South Seattle. More than 20 representatives of King County agencies attended the tour.

top of page