Tanya Polouchina

Mr. McKay

ICS3U

16 September 2021

Problem Solving

Problem (#10):

You are part of Banting's Environmental club (Geography). The computer sciences department has

recently purchased two class sets of new LCD computer monitors. The city has been contacted, and it

turns out that they will accept monitors in the city dump. A teacher is upset that they are disposing of

the computers in such a non-environmentally-friendly way and has approached the environmental club

to come up with a solution.

1. Identify the problem

The science department’s old monitors are planned to be disposed of in the city dump. This

would be environmentally damaging, as many old computer monitors contain toxic elements

such as mercury, cadmium, and lead. When monitors are thrown away, these elements can

often seep into soil and water, eventually evaporate and rain onto crops, polluting nature and

the food chain. To avoid polluting the environment, the environmental club needs to come up

with a plausible and less damaging way to dispose of the old monitors.

2. Analyze the problem

We know a few things about the situation so far. Firstly, we are aware that the computer

science department has access to two new sets of computer monitors, and that someone has

contacted the city for permission to dump the old monitors in the city dump, which has been
granted. Unfortunately, we cannot remove the toxic parts of a computer monitor, as mercury is

contained in the lamp and cadmium in the coating materials, therefore discarding the

computers in a dump will, in any case, be harmful for the environment. Due to this issue, at

least one teacher is against this notion and is actively looking for an alternative solution to be

enacted.

With the information available, we can make several assumptions concerning the situation.

Firstly, seeing that someone has contacted the city concerning using the city dump, we can

suppose that the school is considering disposing of the monitors in that way. This could be due

to it being the simplest and cheapest course of action that they are aware of, assuming that

there is no fee or repercussion (aside from environmental) to disposing of the monitors in the

city dump. Secondly, as we know that the new monitors have already arrived, it can be inferred

that the school wants to get rid of the old monitors as quickly as possible. Finally, we can

presume that the teacher that the environmental club has been approached by is willing to help

with the process of finding and implementing an environmentally-friendly way to dispose of the

computers, as they have previously approached students in order to find a better solution.

The situation also presents a few unknowns. Firstly, how much do the decision makers

understand about pollution and technology disposal? The people making this decision are the

teachers and staff of the school. Other than the teacher who approached the environmental

club, it is most likely that they have a limited knowledge of the environmental impacts of

dumping monitors and other options. The concept of technology pollution is relatively simple,
and the teachers will most likely understand if explained to. A few other unknowns include,

where else to dispose of the monitors, how these monitors will be transported, how old and

what type the monitors are, how many of these monitors are fully functioning, and how many

are broken.

3. Brainstorm ideas

Other options include:

a) Recycle to best buy’s Battery and Electronic Recycling Program, which accepts

all old monitors. This solution would require the payment of a hefty fee, up to

$25 per monitor, as well as transportation to the nearest store. The computers

would be fully recycled, leaving no impact on the environment.

b) Reuse the monitors. Old monitors, if still functioning, can be repurposed as TV

monitors, or used alongside the new monitors to create a dual-monitor. By

reusing the monitors, the school would not require any transportation or to pay

a fee, and would be able to make use of the old technology.

c) Donate the old monitors to Goodwill. Donating to Goodwill is free and only

requires transportation to the nearest Goodwill drop-off location. However, it is

uncertain what would happen with the monitors that do not sell.

d) Resell the old monitors. This could be done online on an e-commerce site or

through a school-organized event. Selling the monitors would allow for the

school to earn money to go towards other programs.

 e) Recycle using Staples’ recycling program. Recycling with Staples is a free option

that is also guaranteed to have each monitor be fully recycled, with no impact on

the environment. However, only 7 monitors can be sent in per day.

f) Donate to Computers for Schools Plus. Computers for Schools Plus is a program

that accepts old technology and computer equipment for usage in schools,

libraries, and other educational institutions. Donating would require an

application to be sent in and for the computers to be transported to a pickup

point.

4. Prioritize ideas

Recycle to best buy’s Battery and Electronic Recycling Program

Pros Cons

- The monitors would be fully recycled, with no
harm done to the environment.
- All monitors can be disposed of at one time.
- Recycling to Best Buy costs a substantial
amount of money, $25. It is unlikely the
school would choose an expensive solution
over a free one.
- All of the old monitors would need to be
transported to the nearest store.

Reuse the monitors

Pros Cons

- The monitors would not need to be
transported elsewhere.
- The school can still make use of the monitors.
- The monitors reused would not have an impact
on the environment.
- Reusing the monitors is free.
- Some monitors may be damaged and still
need to be removed.
- Some monitors may need to be fixed, costing
the school money and effort.
Donate to Goodwill
Pros
- Donating to Goodwill is free
- Some old monitors would be reused instead of
causing pollution.
Resell the old monitors
Pros
- The school would earn compensation that
could go towards the environment club or
computer science programs.
- Monitors that have been sold would be
reused, avoiding a negative impact on the
environment.
Recycle the old monitors using Staples
Pros
- Recycling with Staples is free.
- All of the technology would be fully recycled.
Cons
- Only functional monitors will be for sale in-
store, the remaining would end up in the city
dump, exactly the outcome our
environmental club is attempting to avoid.
- Items not sold in store at Goodwill are often
sent to developing countries, only to end up
in their landfills.
- The old monitors would need to be
transported to the nearest store.
Cons
- Reselling takes planning of an event, setting
up a store on a commerce website, and/or
possibly advertisement.
- It is unlikely that all of the old monitors
would be sold, and a secondary solution
would need to be found to avoid the rest
being sent to the landfill.
- Broken or damaged monitors most likely
would not sell, and also need to be sent to
the dump.
- Schools may be hesitant to sell expensive
equipment/electronics.
Cons
- Only 7 monitors can be sent in per customer
per day, either the monitors would need to
be split up between people or staff would
need to return to donate over multiple days.
- The monitors would need to be transported
 to the nearest store.

Donate to Computers for Schools Plus

Pros Cons

- Computers for Schools Plus is a trusted source - It is uncertain how long the period between
for technology recycling, the monitors would application and drop-off of the computers
not impact the environment. would take.
- Computers are renewed and reused in schools
and libraries.
- We can dispose of all of the monitors at the
same time.
- Sending technology to Computers to Schools is
free.

Recycle - Reuse the Donate to Recycle - Resell Donate to

Best Buy old Goodwill Staples Computers
monitors for Schools
Plus

Free/profitable no yes yes yes yes yes

Simple/easy yes yes yes yes no yes

Can dispose yes no yes no no yes

of/repurpose all
monitors at once

Fully yes yes no yes yes yes

environmentally
friendly

Monitors can be yes yes yes no no no

disposed of
quickly

Final ranking 2nd 3rd 6th 4th 5th 1st

 I chose the option to donate to Computers for schools. This is the overall best option, as it

achieves our main goal: to avoid environmental damage, in a simple and free way, which makes

it a plausible solution that will be accepted by staff. Unfortunately, the computer monitors

would not be able to be sent away right away, however, this con is the least important

compared to the others (simplicity, cost and disposal of all computers) and will most likely have

the least impact on the staff's decision to let the environment club to take on the project.

5. List the steps to be taken

Several steps need to be taken to donate the old monitors to Computers for Schools Plus.

First, the teacher would need to be approached for agreement to host and oversee the monitor

recycling effort. Second, we would need to present the possible solution to the upper staff of

the school, present our idea and ask for permission to complete the project, and have this

permission be granted. Next, volunteers from the environmental club would need to be invited

to help with the transportation and planning of the project. Then, we would have to send in an

application to computers for schools and await a response. Finally, we would need to have

students pack away the monitors and have the teacher drive the monitors to the nearest pickup

point, and dispose of them.

6. Evaluate/test the solution

Despite a few variables, the solution of donating the school’s old monitors is fairly likely to

be successful. The first requirement is for volunteers to follow through with the project. Finding

volunteers will likely be straightforward, as students are often looking for ways to achieve
volunteer hours, and if they are already a part of the environmental club, it is probable that

they are concerned about the environment and would like to help make a positive impact. The

second requirement is a teacher who will overlook the recycling process. This is likely

manageable, as one teacher has already made a special effort to find a more environmentally

friendly solution to our problem, and would most likely be happy to help with the process. If

they cannot, we can request other teachers. In a decent size school, it is likely that at least one

would agree to the idea after hearing of the impacts the project would have. The final

requirement is for the upper staff of the school to agree to the solution, believing that it is a

better idea than using the city dump. Receiving permission is likely, as our process would be an

easier solution, as the environmental club would overlook the process, leaving less work for the

staff. Our strategy would also give the school a better reputation. Sending the old monitors to

Computers for Schools Plus is a reasonable solution with relatively low risk that would spare the

environment of pollution.

Sources:

Weissman, L. (2020, May 5). How to dispose of computer monitors. FancyAppliance. Retrieved
September 16, 2021, from https://fancyappliance.com/how-to-dispose-computer-monitors/.

CBC/Radio Canada. (2018, May 29). Here's where your donated clothing really ends up | CBC
News. CBCnews. Retrieved September 16, 2021, from
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/donated-clothing-where-it-ends-up-1.4662023.