An industrial site in Scotts Valley long known for its less-than-stellar environmental past is getting a little greener as local entrepreneur Ken Keegan’s e-waste collection and recycling business picks up steam.
Keegan, a Scotts Valley resident and 15-year veteran of the telecommunications industry, began operations of All Goods Electronics E-Waste Recycling and Surplus on June 1, in one of the buildings formerly owned by Aviza Technology, at 440 Kings Village Road.
Along with two other employees, Keegan collects obsolete or broken electronics, disassembles them, and separates the components for recycling or resale.
“Usually, it’s old televisions and broken monitors,” Keegan said. “We save tons and tons of raw materials from being mined from the earth.”
The large building is filled with large boxes of separated components, cords, and bits of metal — all sold to an e-Steward-certified recycling facility.
“There are buyers for all this stuff,” Keegan said.
Anything reusable, such as memory chips, is separated and set aside to be sold on the secondary market.
“You see if there’s a value on the secondary market,” Keegan said. “The greenest thing you can do is reuse this stuff.”
Hard drives, on the other hand, are erased, he said. Or, if the owner so chooses, they can by destroyed.
When computers are taken into the facility, Keegan said he offers the owner the option of a certificate of destruction as proof that any information contained on the drive is no longer accessible — a valuable service for a downsizing business.
“We want to be their trusted e-waste source,” he said.
Keegan said that his customers, whether a large business or an individual, have the option to drop off their e-waste, or one of his staffers will come and collect it — either way, there is no charge.
The key, Keegan said, is that in disassembling the e-waste items in-house, he can sell them to recyclers by the component materials, rather than just bringing in an old television.
“We have a zero-landfill policy,” he said. “It’s really worth our while to really sort and separate the stuff.”
As his business has grown, Keegan said, he has enjoyed working close to his home and his family, as well as participating in the Scotts Valley community.
On Friday, Oct. 10, he will be hosting an e-waste drive at Vine Hill Elementary School, and donating half the proceeds of the donated e-waste to support the Parent Teacher Association.
For more information about All Goods Electronics E-Waste Recycling and Surplus, visit www.agerecycling.com or call 440-9051.
