County Programs Electronics Recycling Program
Join us for our next Household Hazardous Waste and Electronics Collection Events on Saturday, October 2 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the New Cuyama Transfer Station and on Sunday, October 3 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Santa Ynez Valley Recycling and Transfer Station. For more details, call (805) 882-3615 or view our flyers:
Cuyama Event Flyer 2010.pdf Cuyama Event Flyer (Spanish) 2010.pdf Santa Ynez Event Flyer 10 3 10.pdf Santa Ynez Event Flyer (Spanish) 10 3 10.pdf
Please note that City of Buellton residents are no longer eligible to participate in the Santa Ynez Valley event. Buellton residents should call the City at (805) 686-0137 to learn about available disposal alternatives.
General Guidelines
If you have a used and unwanted electronic item, please do not throw it into a trash container. Instead, take the electronic item to one of the facilities listed below so that it can either be recycled or donate it for reuse to one of the local organizations listed below.
Listed below are examples of the various types of electronic equipment accepted by the County of Santa Barbara Public Works Department, Resource Recovery & Waste Management Division, to be recycled:
Computers, computer monitors, televisions, printers, fax machines, copy machines, scanners, paper shredders, audio and video cassette recorders, turntables, amplifiers, speakers, compact disk/DVD players, MP3 players, telephones (including cell phones), camcorders, cameras, radios, microwave ovens, toasters, hair dryers, vacuums, electric typewriters, and electric shavers.
In addition, video and audio tapes, compact disks (CDs), digital video disks (DVDs), and vinyl records are also accepted for recycling.
The firm that collects our electronic waste recycles all of the electronic equipment, while the County uses another firm to recycle the metal from the small appliances. Households and businesses may drop off electronic items and small appliances at the following County facilities:
South Coast Recycling and Transfer Station 4430 Calle Real Santa Barbara (805) 681-4345
Days and Hours of Operation:
Monday through Saturday from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Fees:
Households may drop-off all types of electronics free of charge. There is a small fee (listed in the table below) for households to dispose of fluorescent lighting, however. Effective July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010, the following fees will apply to businesses for the acceptance of electronic waste and fluorescent lighting:
Material
Fee
Santa Ynez Valley Recycling and Transfer Station 4004 Foxen Canyon Road Los Olivos (805) 688-3555
Tuesday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Fees: Households may drop-off all types of electronics free of charge. There is a small fee (listed in the table below) for households to dispose of fluorescent lighting, however. Effective July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010, the following fees will apply to businesses for the acceptance of electronic waste and fluorescent lighting:
New Cuyama Transfer Station 5073 Highway 166 New Cuyama (661) 766-2284
Days and Hours of Operation
This facility is open on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays from 12:00 noon until 6:00 p.m. in the summer (the beginning of daylight savings time in the first weekend of April to the end of daylight savings time in the last weekend of October) and from 11:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. in the winter (from standard time in the last weekend of October to the beginning of daylight savings time in the first weekend of April).
Fees
All types of electronic equipment and small appliances are accepted free of charge at this facility.
Ventucopa Transfer Station Highway 33 Ventucopa (805) 448-7489 Days and Hours of Operation The Ventucopa Transfer Station is open on Thursdays and Saturdays from 12:00 noon until 6:00 p.m. in the summer (the beginning of daylight savings time in the first weekend of April to the end of daylight savings time in the last weekend of October) and from 11:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. in the winter (from standard time in the last weekend of October to the beginning of daylight savings time in the first weekend of April).
Fees All types of electronic equipment and small appliances are accepted free of charge at this facility.
The County of Santa Barbara, in conjunction with the City of Solvang, holds semi-annual Household Hazardous Waste and Electronics Collection and Recycling Days for households and businesses in the Santa Ynez Valley during the spring and fall. These events are usually held in April and October of each year. Businesses may participate on an appointment basis only. Further, an annual Household Hazardous Waste and Electronics Collection and Recycling Day is also held for households and businesses in the Cuyama Valley in the fall. For more information, please call (805) 882-3615. Check this webpage for notices on these events, look for advertisements in local newspapers, and listen for radio advertisements regarding these events.
City of Lompoc Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility 1585 North "V" Street Lompoc (805) 875-8024 or (805) 875-8027
Types of Materials Accepted All types of computer, audio and video, and office equipment.
Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. by appointment only.
For households, the first two items are accepted free and a $5.00 fee is charged for each addtional item. For commercial customers, unlimited amounts are accepted for a fee of $5.00 per visit.
City of Lompoc Landfill South Avalon Street Lompoc (805) 875-8024 or (805) 875-8027
Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and on weekends and selected holidays from 10:00 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
City of Santa Maria Household Hazardous Waste Facility 2065 East Main Street Santa Maria (805) 925-0951, extension 7270
Every Saturday from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Computer monitors, televisions, and laptop computers are accepted for free up to three items. For four or more of these types of items, as well as for all other computer, audio and video, and office equipment, the fee ranges from $7.50 to $17.50 per load.
City of Santa Maria Landfil 2065 East Main Street Santa Maria (805) 925-0951, extension 7270
Seven days a week from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
MarBorg Industries 119 North Quarantina Street Santa Barbara, CA 93103 (805) 963-1852
Eligibility
Households in South Santa Barbara County may use this facility.
Materials Accepted
Computer monitors, laptop computers, and televisions.
This facility is open on Monday through Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. MarBorg Industries Recycling/ABOP Center 725 Cacique Street (entrance is on Nopalitos Way) Santa Barbara, CA 93103 (805) 963-1852
The Center is open on Monday through Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
MarBorg Industries Recycling/ABOP Center 20 David Love Place Goleta, CA 93117 (805) 964-1498
The Center accepts all types of computer, audio, and video equipment, as well as compact disks, digital video disks, and VHS tapes.
The Center is open on Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9:15 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Waste Management (aka Health Sanitation Service) 97 Commerce Drive Buellton, CA 93427 (805) 688-7456
Residents in Santa Barbara County are eligible to use the facility.
All types of computer, audio and video, and office equipment.
The facility is open on Wednesday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Waste Management (aka Health Sanitation Service) 1850 West Betteravia Road Santa Maria, CA 93455 (805) 922-2121
Residents in Santa Barbara County are eligible to use this facility.
The facility is open on Mondays through Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
There are two local organizations that accept used computers and computer monitors to be repaired and reused.
Santa Barbara County Education Office (SBCEO) Computers for Families 4400 Cathedral Oaks Road Santa Barbara 93160-6307 (805) 964-4711, extension 5400 Kris White, Project Administrator The SBCEO has a program entitled Computers for Families, in which used computers and computer monitors are accepted. In this program, the SBCEO teaches boys in the Los Prietos Boys Camp of the County Probation Department how to repair and upgrade computers and computer monitors. The computers and computer monitors are then donated to students attending Santa Barbara County public schools for use at home. For more information, please contact Kris White, the Project Administrator.
Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) Computers in Our Future 310 West Padre Street Santa Barbara 93105-4366 (805) 687-1583 Francisco Martin del Campo, Director Through Computers in Our Future, the SBCC accepts donations of used computers throughout the year. Then, during summer sessions, the SBCC teaches students how to repair or upgrade computers. These computers are then donated to nonprofit organizations in Santa Barbara County. For more information, please contact Francisco Martin del Campo, the Director.
Santa Barbara City College Continuing Education periodically offers classes on the repair and upgrading of computers and other electronics. Please visit their website to locate such class offerings: http://ce.sbcc.edu/
Every year, hundreds of thousands of electronic items such as computers, computer monitors, televisions, printers, copiers, fax machines, and audio and video equipment become obsolete in California. Over 6,000,000 obsolete computer monitors and televisions are stockpiled in California households, according to a study conducted by the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB). A study conducted for the National Safety Council projects that more than 10,000 computers and televisions become obsolete in California every day. Further, the study also projects that three fourths of all computers purchased in the United States remain stockpiled in storerooms, attics, garages, or basements. Finally, only an estimated 20 percent of obsolete computers and televisions are collected for recycling.
Each computer or television contains an average of four to eight pounds of lead. According to the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, consumer electronics comprise 40 percent of the lead found in landfills. Other types of electronic items also contain hazardous materials such as cadmium, mercury, hexavalent chromium, PVC plastic, and brominated flame retardants. About 70 percent of the heavy metals found in landfills emanate from electronic equipment discards. The heavy metals and other toxic materials in electronic equipment can contaminate groundwater and pose other environmental and health risks.
Since February 9, 2006, households and businesses that qualify as Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQG) have been prohibited from disposing of batteries, electronic devices, fluorescent lights, and mercury thermostats in the trash. To qualify as a CESQG, a business may not produce more than 100 kilograms (27 gallons or 220 pounds) of hazardous waste per month, including a maximum of 1 kilogram (1 quart or 2.2 pounds) of acutely hazardous waste. Businesses that generate more than this amount are required to use a licensed hazardous waste hauler to manifest and transport their waste. This ban supplements the California Department of Toxic Substance Control's existing prohibition on the disposal of electronic equipment containing cathode ray tubes, such as computer monitors, televisions, and laptop computers.
To assist households and businesses that qualify as a CESQG in understanding the types of universal waste that may no longer be thrown into the trash, click on the link below to the web page of the California Integrated Waste Management Board: Hazardous Wastes and Universal Wastes Banned from Trash. To see a more comprehensive description of the types of electronic waste that may no longer be thrown into the trash and that must be reused or recycled, please click on the links below to access an electronics recycling brochure and flyer. You will also find in the brochure and flyer a list of facilities in Santa Barbara County that accept electronic waste. Please call ahead to determine the days and hours of operation and any applicable disposal fees. Electronic Recycling Brochure (pdf) and Electronic Recycling Flyer (pdf)
Effective July 1, 2008, the recovery payment that an approved collector will receive for transferring covered electronic waste (CEW)(i.e. computer monitors, laptop computers, and televisions) to an approved recycler became $.16 per pound. Effective September 16, 2008, the combined recovery payment rate became $.39 per pound. The combined recovery payment rate is the rate at which an approved recycler may receive reimbursement from the California Integrated Waste Management Board for CEW that it has recycled.
On September 25, 2003, then Governor Gray Davis signed the Electronic Waste Recycling Act of 2003 (aka Senate Bill 20), thereby making California the first state in the country to enact a law to fund the collection of certain types of electronic devices to be recycled. Among its major provisions, Senate Bill (SB) 20 requires the following:
Electronic Waste Recycling Fee
Beginning on January 1, 2005, an electronic waste recycling fee was imposed at the point of sale of CEDs such as computer monitors, televisions, and laptop computers. This fee has been collected from California consumers at the time of all retail sales, including Internet and catalog sales in California. The fee varies, depending on the size of the screen's diagonal size. Beginning January 1, 2009, a new fee structure became effective:
The fees are sent to the State of California and deposited into the Electronic Waste Recovery and Recycling Account. The California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) issues payments to approved recyclers. Effective September 16, 2008, the combined recovery and recycling payment was reduced from $.43 per pound to $.39 per pound. Of both combined recovery and recycling payment rates, approved recyclers will pay approved collectors at a rate of $.16 per pound, a reduction from the previous rate of $.20 per pound.,
The County of Santa Barbara is an approved collector and therefore, has received payments from the approved recycler with whom it contracts. These payments have helped offset some of the costs incurred by the County for paying a firm to collect and recycle the CEDs.
On or before July 1, 2005 and annually thereafter, each manufacturer of a CED must submit a report to the CIWMB that contains the following information:
An estimate on the number of CEDs sold by the manufacturer in California during the previous year;A baseline or set of baselines that show the total estimated amounts of specified hazardous materials used in the CEDs manufactured in that year and the reduction in the use of those hazardous materials from the previous year;
A baseline or set of baselines that show the total estimated amount of recycled materials contained in CEDs sold by the manufacturer in that year and the increase in the use of recycled materials from the previous year; and
A baseline or set of baselines that describe any efforts to design CEDs for recycling and goals and plans for further increasing design for recycling.
Making Information Available to Consumers
Each manufacturer of a CED must also "make information available to consumers that describes where and how to return, recycle, and dispose of the covered electronic device and opportunities and locations for the collection or return of the device through the use of a toll-free telephone number, Internet Web site, information labeled on the device, information included in the packaging, or information accompanying the sale of [the] covered electronic device." As part of this effort, a website, http://www.erecycle.org/index.htm (click on link), has been established to provide guidance and information to consumers, retailers, manufacturers, and recyclers about recycling electronic waste. This website is the result of a partnership among governmental agencies, retailers, manufacturers, and environmental organizations.
If you have any questions about the County's Electronics Recycling Program, please call (805) 882-3615 or send an e-mail message to: lrobins@cosbpw.net.
Send mail to: webmaster with questions or comments about this web site. Copyright © 2000 Santa Barbara County Public Works Department Resource Recovery and Waste Management Division
Last updated: September 2, 2010
