Who are you buying from and how much do they actually recycle? An article in CNET gives some details on the recycling of the big companies but the problem is there is no standard way for companies to calculate such statistics, you are reading their individual companies’ corporate reports, and so much of the stats rely on the consumers actually bringing in items to recycle. But here is what CNET article offers:  Office Depot says they recycled almost 1.5 million pounds of old tech equipment in a year but asks customers to pay $5, $10, or $15 for a box they can fill with everything from printers to digital cameras. Staples started recycling in May 2007 and by the end of the year they say they have recycled 2 million pounds of tech junk. They charge $10 per large item regardless of where you originally bought it. Hewlett-Packard has had a recycling program since 1987 and offers money towards new purchases for recycling.  As of June 2007, they state they have recycled more than 1 billion pounds of electronics with a  goal to reach 2 billion pounds by the end of 2010. In 2007, Apple collected about 21 million pounds of e-waste in 95% of countries where it sells products. Dell offers free consumer recycling and in 2 years announced they had recycled about 255 million pounds of its own products.  IBM says it has collected and recovered from 1995 -2007  more than 1.5 billion pounds of product and product waste worldwide.

if you are thinking about recycling your computer, here is an article on How to wipe your hard drive clean before you drop it off, wherever you choose.