This summer, more than 2,700 residents in Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa and Sonoma counties took action to protect themselves from fraud and identity theft by bringing old financial records and other paperwork to Redwood Credit Union’s free shred-a-thons.
Shred-It trucks were onsite at each event to help communities safely dispose of and recycle 100,080 pounds of documents. And Conservation Corps of the North Bay collected more than 24,300 pounds of e-waste, including old TVs, printers, monitors, computers and other personal electronics for secure recycling. To put that in perspective, the environmental impact of the shredded paper alone is:
- 12,636 trees = 315 acres (almost half of Armstrong Woods!)
- 206,600 gallons of water = watering 330 lawns for 1 week
“There was an air of excitement as staff and community members came together to dispose of documents and e-waste that, in the wrong hands, could be used fraudulently,” said Matt Martin, senior vice president of community and government relations at RCU. “Identity theft is a real risk these days, and RCU wants to help mitigate it in every way possible and provide an environmentally friendly solution for disposing of old electronics and sensitive documents.”
At each shred-a-thon location, attendees had an opportunity to donate to a local nonprofit. In total, the events raised more than $7,700 to support Lake County Child Care Planning Council, SchoolsRule Marin, Plowshares in Mendocino, Puertas Abiertas Community Resource Center in Napa, and Redwood Empire Food Bank in Sonoma.
