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Byteback, a free computer take-back program being trialed in Victoria to help people responsibly dispose of unwanted computer equipment, is marking World Environment Day by announcing a collaboration with Officeworks that will see the opening of Byteback collection sites at two Victorian Officeworks stores.

From July, Officeworks Dandenong and Officeworks Ballarat will provide consumers and SMEs with the unique opportunity to dispose of unwanted computer equipment in a responsible manner rather than ‘dumping’ it to landfill, which has serious ramifications for the environment.

Run by Victorian Government agency Sustainability Victoria in partnership with the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) and founding partners Apple, Canon, Dell, Epson, Fujitsu, Fuji-Xerox, HP, IBM, Lenovo and Lexmark, the Byteback program is an Australian first. Through Byteback, government, industry and consumers are sharing responsibility for the safe disposal of computer waste.

‘We are thrilled to have Officeworks on board as part of this ground-breaking recycling program – this is now the most comprehensive and sustained trial of its kind operating in the Southern Hemisphere,’ said AIIA CEO Ian Birks.

‘Australians are enthusiastic users of technology and we discard significant quantities of used computer equipment. It is very important for our future that we recycle this equipment responsibly and re-use the composite materials.’

The Byteback trial will run in Victoria until at least the end of 2008. It is hoped that the trial will form the basis of a national framework to deal with the safe and responsible recycling of computer waste in every state and territory of Australia.

‘The industry is committed to moving this program forward and we have had great support from the community, local government and particularly from the Victorian Government,’ said AIIA Environmental Manager, Josh Millen.

The opening of the two Officeworks Byteback sites brings the total number of computer recycling sites operating in Melbourne and regional Victoria to six. Additional sites and collection services will be established in coming months to enable Victorians in other rural locations to dispose of their unwanted IT equipment free-of-charge.

Individuals and small businesses are welcome to contribute to Byteback by depositing their unwanted computer equipment at any of the Byteback site locations around metropolitan and regional Victoria.

People can deposit desktops, laptops, computer mice, monitors, printers, scanners, multifunction printers, keyboards, computer power supplies, printed circuit boards, motherboards, network cards, disk and CD drives at all Byteback collection sites.

The main aim of the program is to keep computers out of landfill. All the equipment deposited at Byteback sites is broken down into separate components – such as plastics, glass, metals, wiring and circuit boards – then sent to recovery facilities for recycling. Up to 97% of the materials recovered are reused in new products.

The Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) has welcomed the launch of a pioneering computer disposal initiative in Victoria.

Byteback, a computer take-back program spearheaded by Sustainability Victoria in partnership with AIIA and leading computer and printer manufacturers, will be formally launched by Sustainability Victoria in Geelong tomorrow morning.

AIIA Chief Executive Officer Sheryle Moon said:

“It’s great to see some of our industry’s biggest names working alongside government to keep old computers out of landfill. Byteback is an Australian first because of its cooperative nature, and learnings from Byteback will help the industry prepare for a national approach to disposing of computer equipment responsibly.

“AIIA would like to congratulate the Victorian Government and Sustainability Victoria for its vision in taking such a proactive and consultative approach to reducing the impact of computer waste.

“We are pleased that Byteback will be free to the public and small businesses and gives people the opportunity to dispose of unwanted computer equipment in a responsible way,” Ms Moon said.

Sustainability Victoria is running Byteback in partnership with AIIA and founding partners Apple, Canon, Dell, Epson, Fujitsu, Fuji-Xerox, HP, IBM, Lenovo, and Lexmark. Building on the initial Byteback trial run by Sustainability Victoria and Hewlett-Packard in Camberwell, Victoria, Byteback will expand to include nine Victorian sites and will run until the end of 2008.

“The industry partners will cover the cost of transporting and recycling their branded equipment and AIIA is fully supportive of their willingness to address environmental concerns. We are already in advanced talks with other major players to join the founding partners and we are actively encouraging other industry members to participate,” said Ms Moon.

“We are also exploring another tier of participants – large non-technology organisations who, by their nature, generate significant levels of computer waste. These may include government departments, major banks and financial services companies.”

Sustainability Victoria and AIIA will be assessing Byteback throughout its run to help develop the best solution to be introduced nationally.

AIIA is committed to supporting environmentally sustainable policies and practices for the ICT industry. On 18 October, the association will host a ‘Sustainable Futures Forum’ in Melbourne to explore how ICT can solve the world’s environmental challenges.