Dell Reports on Recycling Efforts

In commemoration of America Recycles Day, Dell has recognized its employees and partners for helping the company exceed its key environmental responsibility goals and create new recycling initiatives.

In the past 12 months, Dell has exceeded its recycled paper content goal and collected more than 175 tons of unwanted computers at recycling events around the world, according to the company. In the first six months of 2005, Dell also accelerated efforts to recycle, reuse or resell non-hazardous wastes from manufacturing and other operations.

“Part of being a great global company is being environmentally responsible,” Tod Arbogast, Dell’s sustainable business manager, says.  “America Recycles Day provides an opportunity for us to recognize our employees, suppliers and stakeholders who have helped Dell increase usage of recycled paper, offer communities no-cost options for recycling computers and increase the volume of waste material we recycle in our own operations.”

Dell established a Forest Products Stewardship Model in October 2004 that documented its paper-usage practices and established paper sourcing and recycling goals.

One year into the program, Dell has exceeded its initial target by achieving 90 percent recycled paper content in its small and medium business catalog, using Forest Stewardship Council-certified paper sources for the majority of the catalog, the company reports. In addition, Dell has increased its usage of post-consumer recycled content for catalog inserts to almost 15 percent and achieved about 30 percent post-consumer recycled content for office paper used companywide.

“The fact that Dell has exceeded its original environmental goals is proof positive that when a company chooses to focus on the environment, it can have a real impact,” Todd Paglia, executive director of ForestEthics, says in a press release issued by Dell. “We applaud Dell’s leadership example and the collaborative process that the company has taken in developing its environmental standards. Dell has raised the bar for the catalog industry and its success is a rallying cry to its competitors.”

Dell conducted community computer recycling events earlier this year in Bracknell, United Kingdom, Munich, Germany, Sydney, Australia, Winston-Salem, Nashville and Oklahoma City. Dell employees volunteered at these events and helped collect more than 175 tons of unwanted computers.

Dell also expanded its partnership with Goodwill Industries by establishing an ongoing computer drop-off program for donation and recycling in the San Francisco Bay area and the in Michigan. The Reconnect partnership began with a pilot program in October 2004 in Austin, Texas, and is expected to gain momentum across the United States.

"Dell has demonstrated that public-private partnerships are a productive, effective way to educate both consumers and businesses about the importance of responsible disposal of computer equipment,” Kate Krebs, executive director of the National Recycling Coalition, says.

In the first half of 2005, Dell recycled, reused or resold more than 45,000 tons of cardboard, plastics, pallets, paper and related materials generated in its manufacturing and other operations. The volume of this material represents more than 90 percent of the total nonhazardous waste generated at Dell facilities in the first half of the year, exceeding the 85 percent recycle/reuse rate achieved last year, according to the company.

Dell is based in Round Rock, Texas. Additional information on the company's environmental initiatives is available online at www.dell.com/environment.