Ransom Ministries – E-Waste Disposal

The mission of Ransom Ministries is to empower the people they serve to utilize their God-given gifts and talents in their careers and community. Ransom Ministries meets two pressing needs in our community. Ransom ReProgram and Ransom Recycling are Ransom’s job readiness education experience and employment social enterprise which fulfill that mission. The Ransom ReProgram addresses workforce shortages and deficiencies by offering job readiness education and employment for returning citizens (ex-offenders), the homeless, and substance abuse treatment program graduates. The programs are open to men and women of all faiths or no faith.  The only prerequisites are a free choice, and a demonstrated willingness to participate in the classroom and the workplace.

According to a recent labor study commissioned by the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce, Mobile County has the lowest workforce participation rate of any city against which Mobile regularly competes for commercial investment. Employer-led organizations (e.g., CGIA) are addressing workforce shortages and deficiencies. High rates of poverty and poor educational achievement contribute to workforce shortages and escalating rates of property, violent crime, and incarceration. Alabama ranks among the top five states in the nation in incarceration rate, but in the bottom five in GDP per person.

The ReProgram participants work for Ransom Recycling, an electronic waste disposal program offering the proper disposal and recycling of valuable commodities, such as copper, gold, steel, and aluminum which reduce the energy and cost of mining and processing these basic materials.

Mobile and Baldwin County generate 22 kilotons of E-waste every year, and landfill disposal of e-waste in our two counties is prohibited by local regulation. Illegal dumping of e-waste or unregulated destruction represents an environmental threat because many of these materials contain toxic compounds, including heavy metals and flame retardants. The United States generates more e-waste per resident than any other nation, but only 15-20 percent of all e-waste is recycled. Ransom Recycling helps prevent illegal dumping of e-waste or unregulated destruction. Many of these materials represent an environmental threat and public health hazard because they contain toxic compounds, including heavy metals and flame retardants. 

“Since we started the recycling project, we have seen not only our environment affected by giving companies a place to dispose of their E-Waste. We have also seen individuals become productive and confident employees for the companies they have gone to work for. They have discovered their purpose and value again, which helps our community in so many ways.” said Matt Armbruster, Ransom Ministries.

Ransom will recycle over 500,000 pounds of electronics this year, which equals 1.3 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions from entering the atmosphere.