Old iPods don’t die, they’re harvested. A growing mini-economy around scavenging parts is giving old and busted iPods second lives. With discarded electronics accounting for 70 percent of the heavy metals and 40 percent of the lead found in U.S. landfills, it helps to keep even a small percentage of Apple’s 100 million iPods out of the e-waste stream helps.

Faced with an out-of-warranty and broken iPod, owners have few choices: Toss it in the junk drawer, make it a high-tech paperweight, pitch it into the trash, sell it, or repair it. Selling it back to Apple nets 10 percent off your purchase, or about a $40 savings on the top-of-the-line iPod. On the other hand, fixing an out-of warranty iPod might bleed a lot of green from your billfold. Just buying a replacement screen typically runs $60 and up, depending on the model.

Googling broken iPods turns up a host of sites that fix them, but most want you to send yours in for an estimate. Should the repairs dig into your wallet too deeply, some will offer to buy the old iPod. At that point, you’re stuck, and any offer that lets you break even on the shipping probably sounds good. Green-minded and nimble-fingered do-it-yourselfers can find parts and make repairs. But if you’re ham-handed, forget it.

But is there a way to combine moola with good enviro-karma? Since April, BuyMyBrokeniPod.com founder and president Brett Mosley has offered both. He started the site after his $300 iPod broke and he found no easy way to dispose of it. The venture combines his entrepreneurial interests with green business. “Most people don’t know they can sell a bad iPod, so it’s a win-win business,” he says.

BuyMyTronics.com tells you exactly what your iPod is worth before you mail it. You specify your iPod model and specs and the website calculates its value. You agree to sell and then follow the directions for sending it in. Once it’s received and its condition is approved, BuyMyTronics.com deposits the agreed-upon amount into your PayPal account. “We usually give sellers better prices for their iPods than Apple or others,” says Mosley.

Broken iPods? More like broken cha-chingPods. (So clever!)

A 2005 graduate from the University of San Diego, Mosley has a good background for a business that runs on slim margins. By day, the 25-year-old entrepreneur is a Denver-based credit-risk analyst in mortgage-backed securities.

Mosley started the iPod business with a partner, Jeremy Cohen, although he has since bought Cohen out. Mosley credits Cohen’s eye for knowing a used iPod’s worth and says Cohen learned how to price pre-owned products while working in his family’s used bookstore in Chicago. Currently the site is buying everything but iPod shuffles. “There’s no real aftermarket for them,” Mosley says.

Mosley salvages parts from some iPods purchased and resells the ones that are in good shape. In other cases, he packages and sells the iPods in bulk to others who resell or rebuild iPods. Bulk sales bring them anywhere from $30 to $130 a unit.

In time, Mosley wants to move beyond dealing in broken iPods and into repair and resale. If this works, he plans to expand into buying and selling parts for Mac laptops. For now, he’s willing to take that broken iPod in your junk drawer and make it sprout more green than Apple, Craigslist, or eBay can.

RECYCLE IT

Reusing before recycling is a step toward reducing e-waste, or at least slowing it down. If not disposed of properly, e-waste can contaminate landfills and cause health problems. Check with your state’s Department of Environmental Quality to find out about rules regarding the disposal of consumer electronics, or to get advice about disposing of electronic devices like iPods. Here are a few places that can repair, provide parts for, or offer advice about your broken iPod.

iFixit offers a free do-it-yourself guide to fixing several iPod models. Another site, ifixipodsfast.com, offers free step-by-step videos on how to fix an iPod.

iPod Repair Guide sells e-books on the topic of repairing your iPod starting at $3.99 each.

iPod Repair Squad promises a free diagnosis within 24 hours after your iPod arrives, while RapidRepair specializes in iPod repairs andgives a quote in 24 to 48 hours.

iPod Mechanic sends you a prepaid UPS mailing label you use to send in your iPod for repair, and the online store also sells iPod parts.