At the end of 2007, Virgin Earth took a good hard look at local businesses and saw a need for an e-waste recycling service.
It's something that is still new in South Africa, although there are a number of companies getting involved. Regulation is still being developed, but Virgin Earth is attempting to keep practices in line with WEEE directives, as already enforced by European law.
The first organization to take advantage of Virgin Earth's e-waste recycling has been MiX Telematics' Stellenbosch office. An agreement was signed earlier this year to process all e-waste generated on site in an earth-friendly and eco-sensitive manner. Recycling bins are provided and serviced regularly, with arrangements for bulk collection of e-waste available as needed.
Others have since joined the party by adding their discarded electronics to the cause. A monitor here, a broken mouse there, a length of cable or a few non-functioning CDs - it all adds up to a considerable volume that would have been left to disintegrate in a landfill!
What happens to the e-waste?
After site removal, it is examined to determine how it should be processed. It is broken down to the smallest possible volume. Computer components, for example, will have all screws and fixing points removed to seperate the parts. These are then sorted into various "ingredients" such as metals, plastic and glass. From there the e-waste is recycled as safely as possible.
Virgin Earth has committed to community involvement - and e-waste recycling forms a part of it. As this drive grows, it will see cash, skills and work opportunities poured back into the community.
For more information, download our E-Waste Brochure.
Saving the Landfills
The Road Ahead
So what's in store for Virgin Earth - what's down the line?
The beauty of Virgin Earth is that it's not set in stone. While still operating sans website, it's been able to adapt fluidly to take advantage of a number of opportunities and fill gaps as they arose. That's not going to stop now that VE has a URL!
As a business, there are a number of avenues VE will be venturing down. E-Waste processing is starting to take off, and we'll be looking at expanding this service to other businesses that generate e-waste on a regular basis.
A Downloads section will be added to the website soon, with just-for-fun screensavers and wallpaper.
The Shop is under review with new products on offer available shortly. This section will also serve as a payment portal in the future for regular VE customers who subscribe to our services.
Look for a Stock Photos page within the next month, with both free and for-sale photographs available.
And finally, watch for news and reports on what Virgin Earth is doing locally.
Virgin Earth is just getting started!
Virgin Earth goes live!
After just over two years of the domain being parked, Virgin Earth went live today! The domain has simply been biding its time until the site was defined and all those ideas rattling around had been brought into one place.
It's still a work in progress. It will still grow and develop, quite possibly into avenues I have yet to imagine. But it's live, and I'm grinning!
Welcome to Virgin Earth. At last.