February 17, 2005 | Read Time: 1 minute
A new report, “Islands in the Wastestream,” analyzes the field of nonprofit computer refurbishers, the benefits of computer reuse, and the obstacles holding the field back.
Published by CompuMentor, a technology charity in San Francisco, the report says nonprofit programs that refurbish discarded computer equipment to help achieve a broader social mission — such as making technology available to low-income families or lessening the environmental impact of disposing of the machines — make up less than 2 percent of the overall computer-recycling industry.
A CompuMentor survey of noncommercial refurbishers in March 2003 found that most of the donated computers they receive have had the operating systems removed or do not include the documentation necessary to reuse the software.
The report, written by Jim Lynch, CompuMentor’s senior program manager for computer recycling and reuse, points to the high cost of operating systems as one of the primary reasons refurbishing programs remain small, often employing few paid staff members and relying heavily on volunteers to refurbish the machines.
Another problem noted is the lack of tax-deduction benefits for companies that donate fully depreciated computers to schools and charities.
The report also includes a profile of Computers for Schools Canada, a nationwide computer-reuse program run by the government that supplies a quarter of the computers in Canadian schools.
To get there: Go to http://www.compumentor.org/recycle/baseline-report.
