What happens when your cell phone finally dies, your mp3 player breaks, or your computer goes kaput? Do you know how to safely dispose of E-Waste?

You can’t just throw it in the trash. Most electronics contain elements that are poisonous or harmful to the environment; particularly lead and mercury. Luckily there are some local businesses that are here to help.

For every day disposal you have some great options:

Dollar Self Storage
DSS is run by Maria. She started her E-Waste program on March 28, 2007. She said that she looked around and saw that everyone was charging to dispose of computers and cell phones and she knew that no one would be interested in doing the right thing, if they had to pay for it. She decided she was going to do it for free. Maria accepts all forms electronics. E-Waste disposal is available 7 days a week.

The proceeds of Maria’s program are donated to the Corona Public Library. Overall, Maria and Dollar Self Storage have raised $50,000.

Dollar Self Storage is located at:
1065 E 3rd St
Corona, CA 92879 [MAP]

Riverside County Waste Management Department
The Riverside County Waste Management Department handles all kinds of hazardous materials including, but not limited to, E-Waste, Used Oil, Paint, and Batteries. A full master program schedule of their hours and locations (from January to September 2012) may be viewed here.

Finally, Make-A-Wish and Monster Energy have teamed up! Together, and supported by ECS Refining’s ecollective program they are hosting an E-Waste Collection: Saturday, January 14, 2012 from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Consumers and businesses are invited to come to the Monster Energy Warehouse located at 1990 Pomona Road in Corona [MAP] to drop off electronics and enjoy a Monster power drink at the same time. E-waste donations will be recycled, and the money raised will be used to help grant wishes for children in Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

So get going, and take care of that old dusty laptop in your closet!