Why you should recycle your electronics + shred your paper at The Birmingham Zoo on Jan. 25

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Looking for a way to start 2025 off right? Begin collecting all of those old and unused electronics and head to The Birmingham Zoo for Jefferson County’s Electronic Drop-Off and On-Site Paper Shredding event on Saturday, January 25.

We spoke with Jefferson County’s Education Training Manager Hana Berres to get the details on which items will be accepted and why recycling electronics (and paper!) is so important for our city. 

Electronic Drop-Off and On-Site Paper Shredding—know before you go

• When: Saturday, Jan. 25 | 9-11:30AM
• Where: The Birmingham Zoo, 2630 Cahaba River Rd, Birmingham, AL 35223
• Cost: Free to attend
• What to expect: 
  • Pack your items in your trunk and wait in your car. Workers will assist in removing them from your vehicle.
  • Be patient—the event is expected to be heavily attended. 

Why you should recycle electronics in Birmingham on January 25

Recycling paper and plastic is easy—just toss it into a specially-marked bin and mission accomplished. 

Recycling electronics, on the other hand, can be more difficult. If we shouldn’t throw electronics like outdated laptops and broken hair dryers in the trash, what do we do with them?

Attending Jefferson County’s Electronic Drop-Off and On-Site Paper Shredding event is a great solution.

Berres gave us some reasons why recycling electronics is so important. See the list below: 

• Most E-Waste contains dangerous chemicals and heavy metals which can pollute water and land if not disposed of correctly.
  • In the U.S., an estimated 70% of heavy metals in landfills came from discarded electronics. Heavy metals include lead, cadmium, mercury + arsenic.
• E-Waste contains as many as 60 elements, including valuable gold, platinum + columbite-tantalites. These elements are not renewable.
  • Recycling electronic devices provides opportunities for material recovery, resource conservation and less destruction to critical wildlife habits.

What to recycle at The Birmingham Zoo on January 25

Here are some items you can recycle at the 2025 drop-off event:

• Cable boxes, modems, routers
• Cell phones + tablets
• Computers + laptops
• Cords, cables, wire, chargers
• Printers, scanners, fax machines (ink + toner cartridges)
• Rechargeable batteries
• Security equipment
• Small appliances (coffee makers, hair dryers, irons, microwaves, toasters, vacuums)
• Televisions + monitors (all types)
• Regular paper, paper folders (5 box limit)

Impact of recycling electronics + shredding paper in Birmingham

According to Berres, there are often costs associated with disposing of televisions and CRT monitors. As a result, many people choose to dump them in their trash, which ultimately ends up in residential landfills. 

It comes as no surprise that residential landfills are not equipped to handle the dangerous chemicals and heavy metals found in various electronics. 

“By offering disposal events with no fees, we eliminate financial barriers and reduce the number of electronic items improperly discarded along with roadways and in our landfills.”

Hana Berres, Education Training Manager, Jefferson County

To see some of the impact of attending Jefferson County’s Electronics and Paper Shredding events, here are some stats from last year’s collection at The Birmingham Zoo: 

• Electronic Weight Collected (pounds): 25,838
• Paper shredded (pounds): 12,100
• Jefferson County households served: 592

If you can’t make this event, there will be four more drop-offs taking place this year.

Ready to clean out your clutter and help Birmingham’s environment? Head to The Birmingham Zoo for Jefferson County’s Electronic Drop-Off and On-Site Paper Shredding event on January 25.

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