Ethical Disposal of a Growing Segment of Our Waste Stream
E-waste has been defined as “discarded electrical or
electronic devices, and/or used electronics which are destined for reuse,
resale, salvage, recycling or disposal” but is more easily defined as “anything
with a battery or a cord”. Some examples would be cellphones, tube-type and
flat panel televisions, computer monitors, laptops, pads, printers, radios,
microwave ovens and DVD players- just to name a few.
It’s likely that everyone reading this has dealt with
e-waste in one way or another. Perhaps one of your electronic devices has
broken, you have gotten a newer version and have no need for the old, or maybe
you kept your original model as long as you possibly could but it finally
became too obsolete or dated to use with current technology.
Current Technology: New is Already Old
Due
to competitive technology and our information savy, “newest and best” driven
society, even brand new technology is out of date within a few months leading
us to upgrade and change out our electronic devices more often than ever
before. It is estimated that 20 to 50 million metric tons of electronic devices
are discarded each year.
E-waste is a dangerous material to dispose of improperly and
irresponsibly due to toxic heavy metals such as mercury and lead and corrosive
chemicals. These substances can cause serious damage when they are disposed of
in the trash and subsequently end up in the landfill. When this happens,
chemicals can seep (or leach) into surrounding groundwater causing serious harm
to individuals, as well as the environment.
E-waste is also not acceptable in your traditional, Single
Stream recycling. Lithium ion batteries which are located in many electronic
devices can cause dangerous truck fires, while mercury-containing devices have
the opportunity to break and cause a hazardous waste 'release'.
The safest and most responsible disposal for your e-waste is
at a designated e-waste drop off location. To find these locations simply
search "nearby e-waste drop off locations". You may also contact your
local landfill, which may have designated e-waste collection days established
for you to drop off your items for proper disposal. Smaller items like
cellphones can also be recycled at e-waste drop off bins located within
electronic stores like Best Buy.
The Most Ethical Choice
There are many options for disposal, but make sure to do
your research to ensure the location you choose for your e-waste collection is
reputable and certified.
Be aware that there are less than reputable vendors who will
strip e-waste of their most valuable commodities, and then dump the remains
illegally and unethically. These remains are often deposited in developing countries or
destitute areas of the world. Here, residents with no other means of income
will often work for pennies-a-day disassembling, melting or burning your
e-waste thus ingesting harmful chemicals and causing others to live in
uninhabitable conditions.
Even those who do not work directly with the e-waste materials,
are forced to ingest high levels of toxins, causing irreversible physical harm,
illness and even death to local residents and their children. The toxins from
the e-waste also poison their drinking water and seep into their soil causing
future generations to suffer the effects as well.
Those who do not witness this activity occurring, such
as yourself, are affected by illegal dumping as well. Toxins from the heaps of
mismanaged e-waste will inevitably leak into our waterways and ultimately end up in
our oceans. It
is no mystery that many of the fish that we ingest contain abnormally high amounts of mercury.
Oftentimes, a good indicator that your drop off location is
legitimate is that there will be a cost associated with the pickup/disposal of
your e-waste. Although some drop off locations are free, be particularly wary
of e-waste collectors who offer to pay YOU for your e-waste. This can be a red
flag as the disposal of e-waste does cost money to carry out correctly and
ethically. Certified e-waste collection and disposal may not always be a free
service but it is a responsible service.
The two most trusted e-waste certification programs are R2:
Responsible Recycling© Certification, and E-Stewards Certification. Both
programs are recognized by the EPA and are run by guidelines designed to
promote and assess responsible practices for electronics recyclers. For more
information, please visit EPA Website on Certification Standards. Make sure
your current provider adheres to these standards to ensure that your e-waste is
disposed of in the correct manner; responsibly and ethically for both the environment and humanity.
