Better Recycling Programs Needed for Electronic Waste

According to The United Nations Environmental Program, approximately 50 million tons of electronics, including old computers and televisions, are tossed out each year. If you crunch the numbers, that comes to about 4,000 tons of what is referred to as “ewaste” being created each hour. Unfortunately, in the United States, only about 12% of this ewaste is recycled.

The remaining 88% of ewaste that doesn’t get recycled finds its way into landfills where they spread toxins through the ground. Just one picture tube can hold as much as eight pounds of lead. In addition, most televisions contain other toxins such as beryllium, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic. Even the plastic casing is coasted with carcinogenic flame retardant chemicals.

Some states have taken steps to keep the toxins from ewaste out of the soil and the water. California, for example, banned putting electronics in landfills 2 years ago. Since then, six more states followed suit and 35 more are considering passing similar legislation. Of course, taking the ewaste from the landfills means finding some other way to get rid of the waste. So where does it go?

According to experts, the majority of the ewaste from the United States gets shipped to other countries, including China, India, Africa, and Southeast Asia. Here, workers go through the garbage and seek out televisions and computers so they can melt down the casings and remove the valuable parts. Often, these workers, who are routinely being exposed to noxious fumes and other toxins, are children.

Unfortunately, states that have tried to pass laws to make manufactures more responsible for the waste have met a great deal of opposition by the industry. In particularly, the Electronics Manufacturers Coalition for Responsible Recycling has put up a big fight. Only one television company, Sony, actually offers a free national recycling program to consumers that want to find a more responsible way to get rid of their old televisions and replace them with a more up-to-date model.