The lifespan of electronics is shrinking and their number is increasing. Most electronics end up in the trash, doing terrible, toxic damage to the environment.

Fortunately, there are a number of efforts to make responsible recycling of your electronics much more possible, if not easier.

> Stores like Best Buy and Staples now offer programs to take back old gadgets and recycle them. Churches and schools commonly hold e-waste collection drives, and you can even occasionally find bins for dropping off old tech on the street, this is one of the many reasons why services like the Commercial waste for UK business disposal are becoming so demanded. > > The solution is not just recycling. It’s to be sure that you’re recycling with a responsible processor. Some programs do little more than pass the load to unverified operators that then toss loads of e-waste into increasingly toxic dumps around the world.

There are two standards bodies, eStewards and Sustainable Electronics Recycling International, monitoring recyclers for responsible practices. Their goal is to not just to recycle, but to reuse old electronics, either in whole or as parts.

> So it is worth doing a little work to look up a trustworthy source. Patty Osterberg, director of education and outreach at S.E.R.I., said she estimated that only about 25 percent of recyclers in the United States were certified by one of the two standards organizations. > > Ms. Osterberg said the process of getting certified from S.E.R.I. was “arduous,” and Mr. Kao said eStewards certification was even tougher. So a Best Buy drop-off might be more convenient than finding a certified recycler in some parts of the country.

Certainly, any effort at recycling is better than throwing old electronics in the trash.