eWaste a Bigger Problem Than Most Imagine

September 2nd, 2011 | posted in Recycling | No Comments →

In today’s consumer environment, eWaste, or electronic waste (things like computers, monitors, cell phones,etc.) is becoming more of a problem as the volumes continue to increase at alarming rates according to landfill numbers.  eWaste is one of the fastest growing sectors of our waste stream, growing two to three times faster than any other waste category currently.  Why do we care?  Well, there are many different reasons to be concerned.

First, there are many different chemicals and substances used in the creation of these products that if not disposed of properly, can be hazardous to our health and the environment’s.  Here’s a comment from an article that I read recently on Waste and Recycling News.com:

Unrecycled e-waste can be hazardous to human health, the environment and our homeland security. Many electronics products contain lead, mercury, polyvinal choloride (PVC) and brominated flame retardants that can leak into the soil and groundwater if improperly disposed.

via Waste & Recycling News | Waste Management/Recycling/Landfill Headlines.

Second is the notion that our current method of recycling these wastes leads to the majority of  them being exported to developing nations.  Often times, these same products are being re-packaged and shipped back to the US as virgin goods, obviously compromising the quality.  Senator Sherrod Brown from Ohio speaks about this in the same article where he is articulating the need for the bill that he helped to pass, The Responsible Electronics Recycling Act of 2011:

In fact, this bill is aimed at reducing the exportation of e-waste to developing countries – which in turn, results in goods that are often repackaged and sold in the U.S. It is supported by Apple, Best Buy, Dell, Electronics TakeBack Coalition, Hewlett Packard, and 29 recyclers representing 74 operations in 34 states.

 

 

The U.S. EPA estimates that in 2009 alone, the U.S. generated more than 3.1 million tons of e-waste. Much of the e-waste collected in the U.S. for alleged ·recyclingö or ·reuseö is actually exported to developing nations like China, where it is often repackaged as counterfeit electronics.

 

 

Many responsible recyclers in the U.S. operate at less than capacity, undercut by brokers exporting e-waste to developing nations. These exports also fuel a growing counterfeit chip market in China that sells fake military grade chips into our military supply chain.

via Waste & Recycling News | Waste Management/Recycling/Landfill Headlines.

Lastly, there’s a personal security issue.  I recently threw out an old hard drive into my building’s dumpster only to see someone combing through it for recyclables a few hours later.  Now, I had already scrubbed the drive clean of any and all information…to the best of my ability.  Who’s to say that this individual didn’t have the capacity to reach into that hard drive and glean something from it that I would rather he not?  Obviously this is an issue with many of our old, outdated and/or malfunctioning gadgets.  Without proper disposal and recycling of these items, who knows to what we expose ourselves.

This is an issue that will become more prevalent the longer time drags on.  It’s imperative that we get it right at the front end of things instead of trying to play catch-up and correcting past mistakes as seems to be the norm these days when policy meets economy.  It bears further watch.

This is just one of the many areas in which SCR can assist our clients with their waste.  Please contact us with any questions so that we can outline for you what it is that we do for our clients every day.