{"id":162739,"date":"2022-04-22T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-04-22T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ict-pulse.com\/?p=162739"},"modified":"2022-04-21T17:26:48","modified_gmt":"2022-04-21T22:26:48","slug":"10-years-later-has-the-world-gotten-a-better-handle-on-e-waste","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/2022\/04\/10-years-later-has-the-world-gotten-a-better-handle-on-e-waste\/","title":{"rendered":"10 years later, has the world gotten a better handle on e-waste?\ufffc"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Electronic waste (e-waste) is something we do not discuss, but it is a growing problem that is not being decisively addressed. To commemorate Earth Day, we are revisiting the topic of e-waste, to see whether there has been any major improvements since our first article on the subject in 2011.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We all have a dirty little secret. Old mobile phones, laptop and desktop computers, and even old televisions, that have been shoved into desks or cupboards, are not being used, and certainly no longer are top of mind. Invariably, these devices have either stopped working, or have been showing signs of age and so have been replaced by newer shinier models.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In one of our earlier articles, Where do our electronic devices go to die?<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, which was published in September 2011, we discussed electronic waste (e-waste). Nearly 11 years later, there have been some improvement in matters related to the handling and management of e-waste in the Caribbean region. However, with today, 22 April, being Earth Day, we thought it opportune to revisit the topic, and the continuing effort needed to ensure the conscientious disposal of e-waste in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Providing some context<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To be clear, and according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency<\/a>, the term e-waste tends to refer to \u201cused electronics that are nearing the end of their useful life, and are discarded, donated or given to a recycler<\/em>\u201d. Virtually all electronic devices comprise materials that are toxic to the environment and\/or to humans and animals. However, many of them also contain material that can be recycled, either to be reused in similar devices, or for other purposes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Historically, when devices were discarded, they ended up in garbage dumps and landfills, where their toxins would be released into the atmosphere when they were burnt, or leached into the soil thus contaminating  the groundwater. From our 2011 article, we are re-presenting the table on the more commonly found toxins in common electronic equipment, especially personal computers, laptops and cellular phones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Table 1: Select hazardous chemicals found in common electronic devices, their uses and the effect on humans and the environment (Source: Wikipedia; Greenpeace)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In addition to dumps and landfills, developed countries would send their discarded electronic products to developing countries around the world, thus shifting the problem from their backyard to ours. In some instances, the \u2018recycling\u2019 of used and (near) end-of-life products was done as donations to schools, churches and hospitals in developing countries. But ultimately, and after a relatively short period of time, these countries were then saddled with having to dispose of these devices, in circumstances where the requisite disposal or other support structures were absent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Electronic devices and the environment: now<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In the computing device manufacturing space, and since our first examination of e-waste in 2011, many manufacturers, such as Apple, Samsung, Google , HP, IBM, have become more aware about their environmental impact and footprint. As a result, they have sought to improve their manufacturing processes \u2013 to make them more green, more energy efficient, and incorporating more recyclable and recycled material. However, a number of challenges still exist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, although the manufacturers have become more environmentally aware, the demand for their products means that more devices are being produced, thus spurring the demand for more raw materials. As a result, their environmental impact and footprint have been growing, though it may be comparatively less than what it would have been 10 years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second, we need to highlight that to varying degrees, the manufacturers have also created an environment to drive the sale of new products. They have made devices difficult or prohibitively expensive to repair or upgrade, and so frequently, consumers need to replace their devices \u2013 thus purchasing a new device \u2013 within a relatively short time frame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Third, and on the flipside, with customers buying computers and other electronic in droves, in-country, there may still not be options available for devices to responsibly and sustainably recycled. In the Caribbean region, many countries now appear to have companies that state that they accept e-waste. However, they are still quite few, and it is unclear exactly how e-waste is handled, and how accessible the facilities are to those who have e-waste they wish to dispose of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, although recent figures do not appear to be readily available, according to the United Nations Environment Programme in 2019<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The world produces as much as 50 million tonnes of electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) a year, weighing more than all of the commercial airliners ever made\u2026<\/p>

Less than 20% of e-waste is formally recycled, with 80% either ending up in landfill or being informally recycled \u2013 much of it by hand in developing countries, exposing workers to hazardous and carcinogenic substances such as mercury, lead and cadmium\u2026<\/p>

The e-waste produced annually is worth over $62.5 billion, more than the GDP of most countries. There is 100 times more gold in a tonne of e-waste than in a tonne of gold ore\u2026<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The above data paints a sobering picture of the state of e-waste globally. Moreover, there is considerable room for improvement by both developed and developing countries in the management of e-waste, to reduce its environmental impact, along with its effects on humans who are exposed to the toxins they contain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

e-Waste in the Caribbean region<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

From all indications, developed countries still have not decisively tackled e-waste, and still are exporting it to developing countries, which are considerably under-resourced, and may not be fully aware of the harmful effects of handling such waste. As mentioned earlier, a few e-waste handling facilities have emerged across the Caribbean region, but matters related to how they are handling such waste, along with the likely health and environmental impact, among other factors and considerations, are not entirely clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There may thus be scope for an e-waste policy and\/or guidance towards the adoption of a standard for the handling and management of e-waste. Further, and as Small Island Developing States, that are being adversely affected by climate change, and whose economies, to a  considerable degree, are reliant on their environmental aesthetics (for tourism, for example), being proactive with regard to e-waste is good business. Hence, Caribbean countries, and the region as a whole, ought to be leading advocates for greener and environmentally sustainable practices, instead of somehow fostering the world\u2019s dirty little secret.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Image credit: Curtis Palmer<\/a> (flickr)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Electronic waste (e-waste) is something we do not discuss, but it is a growing problem that is not being decisively addressed. To commemorate Earth Day, we are revisiting the topic of e-waste, to see whether there has been any major improvements since our first article on the subject in 2011.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":162741,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[11],"tags":[90,72,266],"class_list":["post-162739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ict-tech","tag-e-waste","tag-health-risks","tag-healthmedical","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/e-waste-electronic-waste-computers-devices-parts-Curtis-Palmer-flickr.jpg?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2iE1G-GkP","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162739","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=162739"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162739\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":162746,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/162739\/revisions\/162746"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/162741"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=162739"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=162739"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=162739"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}