Environmental Outrage: Tech Trash!

Hello faithful blog readers! I would like to begin by saying that the majority of this post is a summary of a fantastic National Geographic article available here, in case you’d like to go straight to the source. Their article is of course well researched and well written, while this post will be more sarcastic and snarky (and shorter). Choose what style fits you best!

In this day and age, it is almost impossible to live without some high-tech gizmos. I’m sure many of you out there will admit you “simply can’t live without your iPod.” (News flash: you can. Only a few years ago you didn’t have one, and you survived.) I’m mostly talking computers, TVs, and cell phones, which it really is hard to get by without. I admit that I no longer have a landline phone, and have what could be considered an unhealthy and dependent relationship with my laptop.

Have you ever given any thought as to what happens to your old electronics when they have out lived their usefulness, or have been surpassed by better, faster, and more powerful processors? EPA estimates that 30 to 40 million PC’s will be replaced each year for the next several years. Worldwide, an estimated 50 tons of electronic waste is produced each year. You should be aware that our tech trash contains many hazardous materials, which while safely sealed in a functioning device, can be released once the device begins to fall apart or decay. Quoting directly from Nat. Geo, “In the United States, it is estimated that more than 70 percent of discarded computers and monitors, and well over 80 percent of TVs, eventually end up in landfills [in the U.S.], despite a growing number of state laws that prohibit dumping of e-waste, which may leak lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, beryllium, and other toxics into the ground.”

For this reason electronics should never be discarded with other household waste. Of course, since you’re an environmentalist I’m sure you know all this already and take your electronics to a recycling center. But did you ever research what they do with them?

Nat. Geo. found that, “Dropping your old electronic gear off with a recycling company or at a municipal collection point does not guarantee that it will be safely disposed of. While some recyclers process the material with an eye toward minimizing pollution and health risks, many more sell it to brokers who ship it to the developing world, where environmental enforcement is weak.” Oh, and by the way, most other developed countries, including members of the EU, have agreed not to ship hazardous waste to developing countries through an amendment to the 1989 Basel Convention. Any ideas as to what major world power didn’t sign this accord? Hmm… who could it be. . . ? You guessed it: the U.S.

So which countries end up with our e-waste? Historically, China was the number 1 destination for e-waste, and continues to receive a lot of it despite new laws banning the import of toxic waste. As China cracks down on toxic imports Thailand, Pakistan, and Ghana are becoming the major destinations for tech trash. Sometimes items are re-sold overseas, but most often old computers and TVs cannot be used, and are salvaged for scrap metal.

Computer motherboards and wires contain metals like gold, platinum, and copper that can fetch decent prices as scrap. These items are heated so that the metals melt and can be separated from their plastic and silicon components. The heating releases toxic substances like lead and mercury as well as many known carcinogens into the air, where the scavengers and their neighbors inhale it. Nat. Geo describes that, “The air near some electronics salvage operations that remain open [in China] contains the highest amounts of dioxin* measured anywhere in the world. Soils are saturated with the chemical, a probable carcinogen that may disrupt endocrine and immune function. High levels of flame retardants called PBDEs—common in electronics, and potentially damaging to fetal development even at very low levels—turned up in the blood of the electronics workers.”

In Ghana, people (mostly children) rummage through landfills, dodging around pools of toxic sludge, pulling out odd pieces containing scrap metal. One scavenger is quoted in Nat. Geo. as saying, "The gas goes to your nose and you feel something in your head. . . Then you get sick in your head and your chest."

Now you may be thinking, other than the moral challenge caused by robbing the developing world of their natural resources, using them to increase our own wealth, and returning the toxic remains to the developing world, why should I, a citizen of the west worry? You should worry because, my all-American, Wal-mart patronizing friend, it will come back to bite you.** Nat Geo says, “In 2006, Jeffrey Weidenhamer, a chemist at Ashland University in Ohio, bought some cheap, Chinese-made jewelry at a local dollar store for his class to analyze. That the jewelry contained high amounts of lead was distressing, but hardly a surprise; Chinese-made leaded jewelry is all too commonly marketed in the U.S. More revealing were the amounts of copper and tin alloyed with the lead. As Weidenhamer and his colleague Michael Clement argued in a scientific paper published this past July, the proportions of these metals in some samples suggest their source was leaded solder used in the manufacture of electronic circuit boards.”

So, what can you do? Be sure to recycle your electronics, and research the recycling company you want to use. (And, if you find a company is shady, write them a nasty letter!) Check with the companies you bought your electronics from. Often they have legit recycling programs. Another thing you can do is look for non-profits that collect old electronics and refurbish them for people in need. Almost all police stations collect cellular phones to give to women’s shelters, and EPA offers a decent guide to electronics recycling and donations at http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/hazwaste/recycle/ecycling/donate.htm. Also, Nat. Geo. named Creative Recycling Systems of Tampa as an excellent example of proper recycling techniques. Their website is http://www.crserecycling.com/. I emailed them for some price quotes and other info, I will update this post as soon as I hear back from them. And, lastly, you can lobby congress to encourage them to sign onto the Basel agreement.

*From the all-knowing wikipedia: Dioxins are known to increase the likelihood of cancer. Scientists are working to establish their exact toxicity, but a report from the US Environmental Protection Agency indicates dioxins are considered a serious threat to public health.
** I have no idea what goods Wal-Mart may or may not receive from China. I only name them because they exemplify to me the desire of the average U.S. citizen to want the lowest price possible at the expense of quality or safety.