More than 315 million computers are expected to become obsolete by the year 2004, containing an estimated 1.2 billion pounds of lead, 2 million pounds of cadmium, 400,000 pounds of mercury and 1.2 million pounds of hexavalent chromium.

The problem is creating a boom for PC recycling businesses that resell or dispose of these systems. Governments officials are also beginning to react. The Environmental Protection Agency conducts an Electronic Product Recovery and Recycling Roundtable through which business, government and other officials can trade ideas on how to handle the glut of obsolete gear.

Only 39% of 102 IT managers surveyed by Computerworld said they have a consistent, companywide policy for dealing with retired hardware. More than 20 million PCs became obsolete in 1998 -- but just 14% of those were recycled or donated.

Without a plan in place, PC disposal is a scramble for IT departments. For example, when one company was trying to shed its retired PCs, the machines sat for six months in building space that the company normally rents out for $17.50 per sq. ft. Another company’s staff recently spent several weeks erasing hard drives and finding nonprofits to take 250 computers that were no longer useable after their Y2k remediation.

Meanwhile, some computer recyclers – which buy used PCs to resell or dismantle for scrap -- are so flush that they're turning away recycling business.

Decommissioning a computer isn’t cheap. Hard drives must be scrubbed of proprietary data, internal components may have to be removed, and the systems must then be readied for shipment or storage. For a large company the labor and other costs can total well over $300 per machine.

Legislators are beginning to apply pressure. On April 1, Massachusetts began to require that computer monitors be recycled. The European Commission wants all PC manufacturers to take back used equipment, handle the recycling and phase out all toxic ingredients by 2004.

In 1992, the Environmental Protection Agency banned cathode ray tubes from landfills because of their high amounts of lead. An average computer monitor contains about 8 pounds of lead. Lead can also be found on computer circuit boards. The mercury, lithium, and cadmium found in many PC batteries are toxic at high levels. Other toxins, such as PCBs, are used in computer capacitors and are also hazardous.

The 21st Century Classrooms Act for Private Technology Investment changes current tax law so that companies can deduct the full purchase price of computers and related equipment if they donate them to a school before the gear is two years old. Under the new law, if a company donates a $1000 computer to a school within two years of purchase, they'll get a $360 deduction, assuming they're in the 36 percent tax bracket. In addition, they'll still be able to take a depreciation deduction on the computer each year during the first two years they own it.