E‑waste: toxic techno trash
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By Tom Bryson
A huge amount of e-waste is produced globally every year, yet only around a quarter of it is collected and recycled properly.
Where does the rest of this e-waste waste go, what harm does it do to people and the environment and what toxic chemicals are involved?
In this article we explore the issues of e-waste and what consumers can do about it.
Across the world we are accumulating electronic waste (e-waste) at an alarming rate. The UN reports that over 62 million tonnes of e-waste is produced every year. This figure is expected to rise by 32%, to 82 million tonnes, by 2030.
But, the UN also report that only around 25% of e-waste is properly collected and recycled.
Much of the rest ends up in landfills or in informal ‘recycling’ operations in developing countries, where the toxic chemicals used in production are released into the surroundings causing untold damage to human health and the environment.
Techno waste life cycle
When we talk about the ‘life’ of an electro...
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