Kootenai weighing free TV recycling

A windfall from high scrap metal prices could help expand Kootenai County’s recycling program to include computer monitors and television sets.

Last year, the county’s solid waste program earned $60,000 selling unwanted scrap metal, said Roger Saterfiel, who directs the program. If approved by county commissioners, the solid waste program could soon begin using the money to fund a free monitor-recycling program, he said.

Removing and recycling the metal from a single monitor or television set costs as much as $17 per unit. Most people simply junk their old monitors or sets in the landfill, where they contribute tons of lead, cadmium, mercury and other potentially hazardous metals.

“We’re trying to get it out of the waste stream,” Saterfiel said. “Everything you keep out of the landfill only benefits the county.”

Within three years, the federal government is expected to switch to a digital television signal, requiring special converter boxes for people owning analog sets. It will likely be cheaper to simply buy a new, digital-ready television set, Saterfiel said. “The waste industry is expecting a huge, huge impact from old televisions when this goes into effect. We’re trying to get prepared for it.”

Saterfiel expects the monitor-recycling program to cost between $40,000 and $50,000 annually, with scrap metal sales covering the cost. The idea will be included in the program’s budget request for next year, which must be approved by county commissioners.