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Electronic Waste (e-waste) or waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) means electrical or electronic equipment which is waste (wastes are all substances or objects which the holder disposes), including all components, subassemblies and consumables which are part of the product at the time of discarding. It includes computers and entertainment electronics consisting of valuable as well as harmful and toxic components. E-waste has become an attractive business in developing and transition countries due to low incomes as well as loopholes in the law and its enforcement. This results in risky recycling methods with major impacts on the health of people and the environment. The extreme rate of obsolescence and increasing imports from industrialized countries cause severe problems in these countries.
Recycle Your Computer & Other Electronics
Why should you recycle computer parts and other electronic devices? This answer to the "Recycle Computer" question seems obvious. However, many people don't understand that our planet has been bombarded by an overwhelming amount of unwanted computers, peripherals, and other electronic devices. Many individuals are not concerned with the growing problem that we all face concerning buildup of computer parts and other electronic devices known as "E-Waste."
Landfilling e-waste is harmful to the environment because substances such as arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury and nickel can leach out into the ground and water. These substances can be toxic and have been associated with serious diseases in children, such as cancer and neurological disorders.
E-Waste
E-waste is defined as all obsolete or outdated computers, televisions, cell phones, printers, PDAs, and thousands of other devices commonly used in offices, homes, and by people on the go. The global technological revolution is fueling the rapidly increasing e-waste recycling problem. The demand to effectively and safely recycle the obsolete electronics is pushed by the same demands our society imposes to manufacture the new, smaller, faster more efficient software. The environmentally safe disposal of e-waste has rampantly become a problematic issue over the past decade. Technological advances and legislation on all levels has vaulted e-waste recycling into an evolving multi-billion dollar a year industry.
The environmental concerns regarding e-waste stem from the many compounds that are known to have adverse impacts on the health of the environment all living beings. The following hazardous elements and compounds can be found in everyday e-waste:
- Lead in cathode ray tubes and solder
- Mercury in switches and housing
- Arsenic in older cathode ray tubes
- Antimony trioxide as flame retardant
- Polybrominated flame retardants in plastic casings, cables, and circuit boards
- Selenium in circuit boards as power to supply rectifier
- Cadmium in circuit boards and semiconductors
- Chromium in steel as corrosion protection
- Cobalt in steel for structural strength and magnetivity
Problems caused by electronic waste
Electronic waste is a valuable source for secondary raw materials, if treated properly, however if not treated properly it is major source of toxins. Rapid technology change, low initial cost and even planned obsolescence have resulted in a fast growing
problem around the globe. Technical solutions are available but in most cases a legal framework, a collection system, logistics and other services need to be implemented before a technical solution can be applied. Electronic waste represents 2 percent of America's trash in landfills, but it equals 70 percent of overall toxic waste.[4]
Due to lower environmental standards and working conditions in China, India, Kenya, and elsewhere, electronic waste is being sent to these countries for processing – in most cases illegally. Delhi and Bangalore in India and Guiyu in Shantou region of China have electronic waste processing areas.[5] Uncontrolled burning, disassembly, and disposal are causing environmental and health problems, including occupational safety and health effects among those
directly involved, due to the methods of processing the waste. Trade in electronic waste is controlled by the Basel Convention.
Electronic waste is of concern largely due to the toxicity of some of the substances if processed improperly. The toxicity is due in part to lead, mercury, cadmium and a number of other substances. A typical computer monitor may contain more than 6% lead by weight, much of which is in the lead glass of the CRT. Up to thirty-eight separate chemical elements are incorporated into electronic waste items. The unsustainability of discarded electronics and computer technology is another reason for the need to recycle – or perhaps more practically, reuse – electronic waste.
Electronic waste processing systems have matured in recent years following increased regulatory, public, and commercial scrutiny, and a commensurate increase in entrepreneurial interest. Part of this evolution has involved greater diversion of electronic waste from energy intensive, down-cycling processes (eg. conventional recycling) where equipment is reverted to a raw material form. This diversion is achieved through reuse and refurbishing. The environmental and social benefits of reuse are several: diminished demand for new products and their commensurate requirement for virgin raw materials (with their own environmental externalities not factored into the cost of the raw materials) and larger quantities of pure water and electricity for associated manufacturing, less packaging per unit, availability of
technology to wider swaths of society due to greater affordability of products, and diminished use of landfills.
Challenges remain, when materials cannot or will not be reused, conventional recycling or disposal via landfill often follow. Standards for both approaches vary widely by jurisdiction, whether in developed or developing countries. The complexity of the various items to be disposed of, cost of environmentally sound recycling systems, and the need for concerned and concerted action to collect and systematically process equipment are the resources most lacked -- though this is changing. Many of the plastics used in electronic equipment contain flame retardants. These are generally halogens added to the plastic resin, making the plastics difficult to recycle.
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