What Can We Do About the Growing E-waste Problem?

Technology is becoming more and more integrated into every aspect of our lives. Semiconductors and sensors are being added to products that never before had them, creating wearable monitors, smart homes, TVs that can stream programming from the internet, and much more.

Meanwhile, the life span of devices is getting shorter—many products will be thrown away once their batteries die, to be replaced with new devices. Companies intentionally plan the obsolescence of their goods by updating the design or software and discontinuing support for older models, so that now it is usually cheaper and easier to buy a new product than to repair an old one. Meanwhile, the companies continue to profit from steady sales.

And because prices are dropping, electronic devices are in demand around the world as a growing middle class goes digital. Globally, half of all households now have internet access, and 7.7 billion people have cell phones.

What’s in e-waste?

Electronic devices are made of a complex mix of materials that include gold, silver, copper, platinum, palladium, lithium, cobalt and other valuable elements. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says, “One metric ton of circuit boards can contain 40 to 800 times the amount of gold and 30 to 40 times the amount of copper mined from one metric ton of ore in the United States.” These precious materials can be reclaimed through recycling.

The condition of e-squander reusing 

Reusing e-squander is rehearsed both officially and casually. 

Legitimate or formal e-squander reusing generally includes dismantling the gadgets, isolating and classifying the substance by material and cleaning them. 

Things are then destroyed precisely for additional arranging with cutting edge division advancements. Organizations should hold fast to well being and security rules and use contamination control advances that decrease the well being and natural risks of taking care of e-squander. This makes formal reusing costly. Accordingly, numerous organizations and nations wrongfully send out their e-waste to agricultural nations where reusing is modest.

What you can do about e-waste?

The best thing you can do is to resist buying a new device until you really need it. Try to get your old product repaired if possible and if it can’t be fixed, resell or recycle it responsibly.

Before you recycle your device, seal up any broken parts in separate containers so that hazardous chemicals don’t leak. Wear latex gloves and a mask if you’re handling something that’s broken.

Find a responsible recycler. Clean to Green have been certified to meet the cleanest and most responsible standards for e-waste recycling.