Great Parks to host 3 e-recycling events

Great Parks wants Hamilton County residents to clear out their old electronics this fall – and keep hazardous e-waste out of landfills.

The countywide park system is partnering with Cohen Recycling to host three Saturday morning drop-off events: Sept. 6 at Miami Whitewater Forest Harbor, Oct. 11 at Woodland Mound’s Breezy Point and Nov. 1 at Winton Woods’ Harper Meadows. Each runs from 9 a.m. to noon.

Residents can bring nearly any item with a cord or that takes a cord, including computers, cellphones, DVD players, video game systems, telephones, laptops, tablets, fax machines, keyboards and microwaves. They’ll accept remote controls and batteries as well. Box-style TVs and other cathode ray tube devices require a $10 fee. 

A full list of accepted items is available at cohenusa.com.

“These events continue Great Parks’ conservation leadership by keeping tons of recyclable electronics out of our landfills and preventing hazardous e-waste from reaching our soil and water,” said Stephanie Bacher, sustainability coordinator for Great Parks.

Growing a greener, more sustainable Hamilton County

Sustainability guides much of Great Parks’ work. In 2024, the park system adopted its first Sustainability Strategic Plan and continues to push projects such as solar panel installation, irrigation upgrades, fleet transitions and energy-efficiency audits through the international 2030 District Network. It also partners with organizations including Rumpke Recycling, GoZERO and Matthew 25: Ministries to divert waste streams ranging from plastics and food scraps to uniforms.

Electronics recycling is central to those efforts. Disposing of e-waste in landfills can release heavy metals and other toxic chemicals into waterways and habitats. 

By teaming with Cohen Recycling, Great Parks said it wants to provide residents with a “simple, responsible way to recycle unwanted devices.”

Last year, the e-recycling events collected 30 tons of electronics from more than 1,000 carloads. The partnership also supports holiday lights recycling, which brought in a record 8 tons last season, and a year-round cell phone recycling program with Eco-Cell at 10 park locations.

“Sustainability is a guiding value at Great Parks that we work into all of our planning decisions and public outreach,” Bacher said, “so keeping hazardous e-waste out of our soil and water is natural for us as we conserve our natural resources and find ways to live more sustainably as a community.”

Great Parks sustainability efforts