Ever wondered where and how to get rid of your old electrical, household appliances, computers, cell phones, video machines, etc? If you didn’t and dumped them with your normal household garbage, you have just contributed to the e-waste epidemic!
What is e-waste?
It is widely accepted that e-waste or WEEE refers to anything that runs on electricity and has reached the end of its “useful” life. It includes electronic products such as cell phones, computers, television monitors, VCR’s, stereos, copiers and household products, to name a few. However, e-waste also includes some less obvious items such as spent fluorescent tubes, batteries and battery-operated toys.
So what’s the big deal?
E-waste is locally and internationally a waste disposal and environmental problem of epidemic proportions. Research conducted in Europe, for example, shows e-waste reaching an unprecedented rate of more than three times the rate of municipal waste − and growing! E-waste, and the proper disposal thereof, causes concern because of the toxicity of some of the substances it contains. In the USA it equals 70% of all toxic waste.
Hazards of e-waste
E-waste is a difficult issue to deal with because it contains extremely hazardous substances and chemicals that may enter and pollute our air and water systems when not correctly disposed of.
Here are a few examples.
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- Cadmium is found in the batteries that power many types of equipment. It can severely damage the lungs and even cause death. These batteries also contain other metals such as lead, nickel, silver and lithium.
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- Lead is found in television and computer monitors that contain a picture tube known as the cathode ray tube (CRT). The amount of lead in these tubes is dangerous to both adults and children and may cause blood anaemia, kidney and brain damage as well as severe stomach ache, muscle weakness and even death when swallowed by children.
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- Mercury is found in the Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs) on some desk and laptop display monitors, some portable DVD players and plasma TVs. The circuitry within the monitors also contains chromium, copper and lead.
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- Non-metals such as plastics and flame-retardants, core components of most e-waste, can also cause health problems when not handled properly.
Is there a solution?
According to the NGO, e-Waste Association of South Africa (e-WASA), e-waste is valuable as a source of recycled, secondary raw materials if handled and discarded properly.
The pros of handling e-waste correctly may include the following.
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- Certain metals such as gold, copper and silver may be recovered from e-waste and sold. In fact, 35 274 pounds of copper; 772 pounds of silver; 75 pounds of gold and 33 pounds of palladium can be recovered from every one million cell phones recycled.
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- Manufacturers that remove hazardous substances such as lead from their products during the design and manufacturing process (before they are forced to do so by legislation) will be making an immensely contribution to the problem of solving e-waste pollution and consumers as well as Government will sit up and take note.
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- Products may be re-used or recycled instead of discarded to add to the already high e-waste stream if manufacturers commit to the recycling of their products and undertake to manage the process.
We as the public and the consumers of the electronics that pile up as e-waste, have a duty to help solve the problem and protect our environment. How? By reducing waste, recycling and reusing instead of just dumping. Visit the e-WASA website (http://www.ewasa.org/) for information on where to recycle and how the process works.
Sources
11 Facts about E-Waste. Retrieved from: http://www.dosomething.org/
Environmental effects of E-Waste. Retrieved from: http://www.ewastecenter.com/
E-waste recycling in South Africa. 2009. Retrieved from: http://blog.engineeringsimplicity.com/
(Revised by M van Os)