According to the EPA, e-waste is the fastest growing municipal waste stream in America. When tech isn’t recycled properly it can affect not only the planet but your business. How do you recycle e-waste properly? Here are four tips on how you can properly recycle your used technology:

1) Inspect Your Tech

Before you let go of that phone or laptop inspect it. You can resell some of your used technology. For example, a used iPhone 6s may be worth up to $400.

2) Research Your Tech

Tech recycling is not a one size fits all deal. NIST 800-88 document, a guideline for media sanitization, describes how organizations should recycle their tech. Do research on how to dispose of your tech gear so it does not fall into the wrong hands.

3) Wipe Your Data

Depending on the technology you may need to clear your hard drive. If you stored information on your smart device such as emails, cell numbers, photos, or shopped online you will need to wipe your device. Deleting the information and emptying it from your virtual trash can is not enough. You have to use software like Blancco to remove the data completely.

4) Find A Recycler

After erasing your data you can’t just throw your e-waste in the trash with the food scraps. You must find a location that will take your used tech. Before you choose an e-waste recycler make sure they safely and ethically recycle your equipment. Recently the Basel Action Network (BAN) released a report that exposed Goodwill’s recycling policies. The study unveiled that the retailer shipped donated computers overseas to China. In regions like China, they use e-waste to make counterfeit parts. Aside from this being illegal, these counterfeit parts were found in life-saving medical devices like defibrillators. To verify your recycler, check out e-Steward’s list of certified recyclers