ELECTRONIC WASTE EVENT ENDS WITH BIG HAUL

By Ezra Mann/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF

Residents of Jefferson County lined up to dispose of their electronic waste in droves Saturday with thousands of pounds dropped off for the first electronic scrap collection event, said Gloria Sumner, executive director for the Pine Bluff/Jefferson County Clean and Beautiful Commission.

Held from 9 a.m.-2 p.m., the event brought in about 38 pallets and several loads of large televisions or copy machines, added Sumner.

Pine Bluff Household Hazardous Waste Management, Jefferson County Recycling and the Pine Bluff Street Department were also sponsors of the event.

“I’m very pleased with the turnout,” added Sumner. “It was much better than I expected.”

Dwayne Waring, a Pine Bluff resident, brought up a few electronics and thought it was a great way to clean up the community. He added that it beat tossing the items in the landfill.

“It comes in handy,” said Mike Eastman, a Pine Bluff resident. “I tried to set it up during the week, but didn’t get the help I needed.”

Clean and Beautiful is planning a similar event in February in cooler temperatures, a change from Saturday’s 100 plus temperatures which drained the 12 volunteers at the event, added Sumner. She was thankful for those who braved the heat.

In the past year the city of Pine Bluff collected 12,000 pounds of electronic waste such as televisions, computers, cell phones and other products. The electronic waste collection effort prevented these objects from contaminating the landfill with lead, oil, and other hazardous waste, a spokesman said.