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Aloha Punawebbers,
Anyone know where to take an old, non-working microwave for disposal or recycle? I've looked all thru the Hawaii County website, but I'm didn't see any place. The pages for e-waste and appliances all specifically say where NOT to take microwaves... but that isn't very helpful.
No wonder these kinds of things always just get thrown in the jungle! Any help is appreciated.
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The Hilo waste transfer station has an area for old appliances.
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Pahoa transfer station has one, too, last time I looked.
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Just to repeat... Hilo and Pahoa DO NOT accept microwaves for recycle. After searching through the Hawaii County website with no luck, I emailed them. Here is the response I received:
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"Aloha,
Since nobody wants to recycle microwaves you may place it with your regular rubbish for disposal.
Mahalo.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Chris Chin-Chance, Recycling Specialist III
County of Hawai‘i
Dept. of Environmental Management, Recycling Section"
It's funny to hear about how important recycling is, and how bad it is for appliances and e-waste to go into our regular landfill, then to get such an official response. "Malama the Aina" - sure! It's one of those "blame the other folks" kinds of things on the County side. I feel for the the people that have to work there and know how backwards and inefficient we are here on this Island.
Oh well... if you see me tipping a big microwave in the rubbish bin at Pahoa, come give me a big hug and we can talk about how we are all poisoning the Earth together.
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I disposed of one last year and that's what a guy at Pahoa transfer told me to do. I was offloading it at "whites" & he told me to just dump in rubbish.
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Interesting. There is indeed an area for disposing of reefers, washers and dryers, water heaters and ranges (at Hilo). I never considered that they would turn away any household appliance.
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Have you checked at Mr. K's Recycle Center in Hilo? They take small appliances for small fee but no charge on Saturday. I dropped old TV and electric blender there for free a few years ago.
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I'm not going to Mr. K's or anywhere else if I can dump it in town. We just dumped an entire deck and railing from a major 2 storey remodeling, over 500 square feet of decking and 150 linear feet of 2x4 railing in rubbish,enough to fill at least a Matson because it was not "green", was painted lumber. That all could have been burned in a waste to electric incinerator cleanly that this county is too stupid to install. It will all be buried. Pathetic.
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How about dumping it at some roadworks? I don't think anyone will notice.
Yes, I'm joking.
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A microwave oven can also be used as a Faraday cage to keep your smartphone from spying on you.
