Q&A on the News

Q: In Georgia Power’s EarthCents Refrigerator Recycling Program, how much do they make on recycling them? What do they do with the fridges, and does the money they make pay for the crew they send out to collect them and the $50 rebate check to families? —Pat Brady, Atlanta A: The company doesn’t make money on recycling refrigerators and offers the service to its customers “as a way to reduce demand on the grid, help them save money and become more energy efficient,” Georgia Power spokesman Mark Williams told Q&A on the News in an email. The company pays for the collection crews and rebate. The refrigerators are recycled in an “environmentally friendly manner,” so they don’t end up in a landfill, he said. Refrigerators that are 10 years old or older generally contain 159 pounds of steel, 75 pounds of plastic and 10 pounds of glass. For more information, call 866-4469250. Q: In interviews after golf tournaments, the players mention exact distances to the green. Do they have GPS devices? You never see a caddie measure. —Robert Lilja, Woodstock A: Pro golfers and their caddies can use rangefinders during practice rounds, but not during competition. They can record that data for use in the tournaments, and they also have access to “detailed yardage books that are sold to them by the club or private individuals,” Nelson C. Silverio II, the director of communications for the PGA Tour, told Q&A on the News in an email.