This Saturday, three companies are teaming up to recycle old electronics in recognition of Earth Day.

MCG, Vermeer Corporation and Pella Corporation are partnering for the second annual Earth Day eCycle event. In Oskaloosa, people will be able to drop old electronics off from 8 a.m. to noon in the parking lot west of Musco and south of Hy-Vee. In Pella, people can drop off electronics at Vermeer Corporation’s Plant 4 driveway between 9 a.m. and noon.

Brett Paulsen, an MCG manager, runs the Oskaloosa eCycle event.

People dropping off electronics will not have to get out of their cars, Paulsen said. If the line is running smooth, a car could pull up, be unloaded in two to five minutes, and be on its way.

“For the most part, it zips right through,” Paulsen said.

The first hundred cars that drop off electronics in Oskaloosa will get a free T-shirt. Workers will also hand out coupons and reusable grocery bags.

Paulsen said that last year the Oskaloosa site raised $500 for the United Way during the event. This year, MCG will raise money to go toward building the Mahaska County Hospice House.

Some accepted items for recycling are computer monitors, video game systems, cell phones, printers, computers, stereos, televisions, keyboards and VCRs. He said most electronics will be accepted, but kitchen appliances will not. Computers will be shrink-wrapped before being sent to the recycling center, Midwest Electronic Recovery in Wolford. Paulsen said the computers are then taken apart and the hard drive is destroyed, protecting personal information.

Last year, people brought approximately 560 pieces of electronics weighing approximately 14,000 pounds to the Oskaloosa site. During the past three years, Pella and Oskaloosa have recycled more than 79,000 pounds through the eCycling event during the last three years.

According to Midwest Electronic Recovery’s Web site, recycling items are either refurbished for resale or demanufactured and sent to an industrial site for material reclamation. More information is available at http://www.mcbia.com/ewaste.

Information is available at www.mahaska.org for the event, or calling 676-1000.

The next Saturday, Oskaloosa Trees Forever plans to distribute approximately 250 trees as part of the Plant Some Shade program, said chair H.C. Coen. MidAmerican Energy Customers should have received a form in their last energy bill that will allow them to purchase up to two trees for $25 each.

There are five types of trees and still some to be purchased. Trees will be distributed on April 26 at the Southern Iowa Fairgrounds. The order form can be downloaded at http://www.oskaloosaiowa.org/housing/TreesForever.php. More information is available by calling the city’s housing department at 673-8361.

Herald Staff Writer Wes Kappelman can be reached by e-mail at news2@oskyherald.com