The Problem Of E Waste

This paper will discuss what e-waste is, what is happening to the e-waste and why it is a problem. The paper will then discuss what can be done to improve the situation.

Recycling is a very essential and crucial process in our world today. The term recycling means that waste can be converted into new products instead of being discarded. As the population continues to grow, humans are using more and more products. In order to reduce the amount of waste on planet Earth, and to preserve its resources, recycling is significant. Not only does recycling allow the environment to thrive, but it also allows living people to thrive as well. There are many materials that can be recycled. Plastics, electronics, aluminum, food and glass are only but a few products that can be recycled. Recycling can benefit our environment in numerous amount of ways. However, without recycling, negative impacts on our environment can occur. Some of these effects include pollution whether it is air, land or sea, depletion of natural resources and even an increase threat to global warming. Therefore, recycling is extremely important to sustain our environment.

Electronics Recycling. Electronic recycling is one consideration the company can do better with. Recycling in general lowers greenhouse gas emissions that are caused by manufacturing items for the first time. Recycling electronics conserves natural resources making cleaner air and water. The valuable resources computers and electronic components carry are metals, plastics, and glass. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), recycling a million laptops would give back enough energy for 3500 American homes’ electricity. A million cell phones would could yield 35,000 pounds of copper, 772 pounds of silver, 75 pounds of gold, and 33 pounds of palladium. Instead of throwing out the old computers and blackberry’s, the company could simply upgrade the hardware or software and then recycle the parts necessary.

E-waste or electronic waste is the number 1 fastest growing trash in the united states since 2004. E-waste is made up of lead, mercury, , and caldium. All of these Acids are deadly to the human body. Alex lin and many other teen activists work with these acids every day. Also, These activists are trying to stop these deadly acid from seeking into the ground and killing natural resources. These acids can also get into the water systems and harm people. When you get a new electronic you would most likely through it out in the TRASH, but you should recycle old electronics. According to the Electronic recycling 101 article, 3 million tons of electronic are trough out and only 13.6 of them are recycled. This shows that many people are unaware of

As used electronics is becoming a waster hazard worldwide local governments such as where I live include programs at local waste stations purely for electronics. This encourages local residents to freely drop off their electronic waste, like TV’s and computers and mobile phones to these locations where the waste is sorted and than shipped to facilities that can process this waste appropriately which also includes recycling as much material as possible. This has a

It has become the new “norm” with people to replace their electronics because their devices become out of date or they feel like they have to have the latest thing. In the article “Our E-Waste Problem Is Ridiculous, And Gadget Makers Aren’t Helping,” by Christina Bonnington, the author discusses how people buy new electronics every year when they come out and the old ones get abandoned. She also talks about how many people aren’t properly recycling their old devices and how some electronics can be impossible to recycle the right way. She also talks

In her essay, “The Story of Stuff: Electronics”, Annie Leonard discusses certain technology manufacturing processes, and the growing ecological problems of technological “e-waste” that they cause.

Recycling is reusing materials like paper, plastics, and glass, breaking them down and turning them into a new product. This way no materials get wasted and not as many resources are used up for new products. There are many ways to dispose of waste, in this case plastics; incineration, landfilling, biodegradation and recycling. Incineration is effective however creates negative environmental risks and health risks by releasing different harmful gases. Landfilling requires space and many chemicals and energy in plastics are lost in disposal routes. Biodegradable plastics may not degrade fast enough to avoid a build of plastics and to help the environment. Recycling plastics is time consuming and plastics must be sorted through by the types of

If you where to ask a small child in Nigeria—"what do you do everyday?" They will most likely answer, "burning e-waste and selling the minerals inside in in." Not an answer you would receive from an American children living in the Untied States. Slowly this kids are being sicken by all the dangerous substances that e-waste contains. Soon this will lead for their bodies to stop growing properly. They will eventually die. Old electronics should not be thrown away, instead recycled. Because it is not healthy for the people in the countries that try to take out the material inside of the e-waste. And because we need tougher laws. Also because you can recycle.

While being too focused on new, bright and shiny technological innovations, a lot of people don’t think about where their old obsolete technology goes or how it affects the environment. Electronic waste (E-waste) “...comprises electrical appliances such as fridges, air conditioners, washing machines, microwave ovens, and fluorescent light bulbs; and electronic products such as computers and accessories, mobile phones, television sets and stereo equipment” (Lundgren). Recycling electronic waste is expensive, so many developing countries receive E-waste from other countries (often times illegally) to extract valuable materials from the electronics to be used for the country’s benefit. Although the country recycling this waste benefits from an economical standpoint, the environmental and health standpoint isn’t so lucky. “...rudimentary recycling techniques coupled with the amounts of e-waste processed have already resulted in adverse environmental and human health impacts, including contaminated soil and surface water” (Lundgren). With an extreme lack in any sort of safety regulations, poor workers are taken advantage of and suffer the most because “...workers and communities are exposed to many highly toxic chemicals" (Marko) and it’s all because Americans don’t want to spend the money or take the time to properly recycle these products. The

Increased recycling means less trash entering landfills. The greatest environmental benefit of recycling is the use of energy and natural resources when old materials are used to make new products. Many consider recycling an easy task. Products that become garbage have an effect on global warming, which makes recycling as a viable option. The phrase ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’ was coined to promote recycling and a clean environment. Recycling is a simple way in which people can contribute to making a better world. It takes time and effort to collect, separate and send trash away. Recycling effects every aspect of our environment—homes, schools and hospitals.

Telstra has a long-term plan for their company and customers to prolong electronic devices and materials. Therefore, they have provided the solutions for 'e-waste' to achieve the refreshed and renewed targets in "more holistic and coordinated manner” that can maintain the environmental conditions, simultaneously, human benefits in general (Corporate Waste Solutions 2017).

Recycling is a method of reusing materials that would otherwise be disposed in a landfill or incinerator. Recycling started due to an overflow of waste in landfills and only the basic materials, like paper and plastic, were recycled. Recycling evolved and became an important aspect of environmental studies and the benefits of it. There is a wide range of materials that can be recycled today. New developments in recycling are always being created to make the already simple process, simpler. Recycling is beneficial to the environment, it’s easy, and it helps clean up the community you and future generations live in.

These days, our earth has been filled by a lot of waste. There is a lot of garbage, plastic waste, and electronic waste. We always produce it and dump it when we need the new one. Our waste are piling up and continuously accumulating. Plastic waste is one of the biggest problems for us now. And our solution in this problem is recycling. In my opinion, recycling is a way to manage used items into new products. We can reduce, reuse, and recycling (3R) waste management (Peter, 2013). We can reduce our waste clothes with reuse it. There are some reasons why peoples recycle used or unwanted items, which are, prevent wasting unusable materials that still have usage after recycled, reduce the application of raw materials, reduce energy

We, humans, are producing waste every day, polluting and destroying our planet. To save the world, many people believe recycling is the obvious solution. It is the process of converting certain waste into a reusable material. Therefore, the recycle motto is “Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle”. However, have you ever wondered why the word recycle is placed at the end? Well, it’s because it is not the only way to reduce waste and save the world from global warming. Recycling may have many advantages, but its disadvantages’ list is not a short one either. Recycling may look very simple and easy method, but when there is a need for a new unit of waste recycling, it takes up a lot of space. Not to mention the amount of money the building costs along with paying the staffs, buying new utility vehicles, upgrading the recycling unit and different types of chemical disposals. It is not only expensive but also, unhygienic, unsafe and unsightly with piles of waste materials on every location. These wastes spread infectious diseases putting human health at risk. Aside from recycling