Starting February 20: Television & Computer Recycling Free at Streets Division Drop-off Sites for Madison Residents
This change will be in effect from February 20, 2023 until the end of the year.
These items will be accepted at no cost from City of Madison residents at the Streets Division drop-off sites. Businesses may not use the electronics drop-off sites.
Recycling fees for other items, such as refrigerators, microwaves, and tires, remain in place.
Why are televisions, computers, laptops, and monitors now free?
The City of Madison contracts with Universal Recycling Technologies (URT) to accept and recycle electronics collected at Streets Division drop-off sites. Fees are charged by the City to allow the City to recover its costs to provide this service.
In a separate agreement with URT, Samsung has agreed to cover the costs for electronics recycling for 2023.
This means that the City will incur no electronics recycling costs in 2023. And the Streets Division will be able to forgo the recycling fee charges in 2023 for recycling televisions, computers, laptops, and monitors that had been used to offset the City’s electronics recycling costs.
How to Recycle Your Televisions, Computers, Laptops, and Monitors
If you are a City of Madison resident, simply take these items to a Streets Division drop-off site.
Starting on Monday, February 20, 2023 you will not need to fill out a large item work order or pay a fee for these items.
The hours and locations of the drop-off site can be found on the Streets Division’s drop-off site page, www.cityofmadison.com/DropOffSites.
Do not place televisions, computers, laptops, or monitors to the curb. These contain hazardous items like lead or mercury, and can also hold sensitive information. If you place a television at the curb it will be subject to removal by city staff, and if such a removal occurs, you will still receive a special assessment from the Streets Division for administrative costs. Additional details can be found at the Streets Division’s electronics recycling website, www.cityofmadison.com/eCycle.
Certain Electronics Must be Recycled
Several electronics items are banned from landfills in Wisconsin, which means they must be recycled. All of these items are accepted at the Streets Division’s drop-off sites.
These items include the following devices and peripherals:
- Cell phones & smart phones
- Computers (for example, desktops, laptops, tablets, and other devices)
- Computer peripherals
- Keyboards
- Computer monitors
- Mice
- Scanners
- Modems
- Routers
- Web cameras, flash drives, external hard drives, etc.
- Digital video players/recorders
- DVD players
- Blu-ray players
- E-readers
- Fax machines
- Printers
- Desktop printers
- Fax/scan/copy printers
- 3-D printers
- Televisions
- VCRs
Who can use the Streets Division drop-off sites for electronics recycling?
The Streets Division accepts material from City of Madison residents and taxpayers.
We cannot accept electronics from businesses.
The City of Madison is a registered collector with Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources e-cycle program. This means we cannot accept electronics from businesses.
If your business has electronics items that need to be recycled, choose a reputable private electronics recycling vendor. The Wisconsin DNR has a helpful tool on their website to find electronics recyclers who can accept items from businesses.
Other Recyclable Electronics
While not banned from the landfill like the items above, many electronics can still be recycled at the Streets Division drop-off site. These include everything from stereo equipment to cameras to game systems to holiday lights to charging cords.
Additional details about electronics recycling in Madison can be found at www.cityofmadison.com/eCycle.
How long will it be free to recycle televisions, computers, laptops, and monitors?
It is expected for these items to be free of charge for the entirety of 2023.
If the opportunity to accept these items at no cost is available in 2024, it will be announced at a later time.
More Information
Additional information about the Streets Division’s electronics recycling can be found at www.cityofmadison.com/eCycle.
Contacts
- Bryan Johnson, 608-267-2626, streets@cityofmadison.com
- Streets Division - West Office, 608-266-4681
- Streets Division - East Office, 608-246-4532
