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by The Sylvan Hivə of Turbeaux. . 85 reads.

August: E-Waste Awareness Month

The Problem:

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Forty million tons of electronic waste (electronics/electronic accessories that are thrown away) is generated every year and only about twelve and a half percent of it is recycled. It is often full of toxic materials (examples include lead, mercury, dioxins, and cadmium). Much of it ends up in poor regions of Asia and Africa where these toxins inevitably leach into water supplies, killing aquatic life as well as severely impacting the health of land animals (including humans). Additionally, plastics involved are photodegraded into microplastics which proliferate globally at an alarming rate. (Microplastics severely impact animal health. No animal life has evolved any mechanisms to combat them.) Some simple steps can be taken to minimize your E-waste footprint:

Solutions:

1. (Reduce) Do not purchase new electronic devices unless the justification for doing so outweighs the environmental degradation that the e-waste from it will create (Of course, this is ultimately a personal judgement. However, it is easy enough to find the facts that you need to inform it).

2. (Reuse) If you find yourself with unneeded electronic hardware, try to reuse it (I have a single cable that I use to charge my shaver and water flosser.). If you cannot reuse it with other technology that you own, consider using it for other purposes. For example, I am using a broken wireless phone charging stand as a camera mount. If you cannot do any of these things, please consider selling/trading in or donating these items.

3) (Recycle) There is some E-waste that cannot be reused for one reason or another (when a cable is cut, no amount of handiness is going to restore it into a functional and safe one. Such items can be recycled easily enough. In the US, every Best Buy location accepts E-waste for recycling (I will include a link with details in my references). If you are handy and have the necessary equipment, you can recover some metals on your own.

4) (Responsible disposal. That’s right, I added a fourth R!) Unfortunately, some items like damaged batteries cannot be addressed with Rs number two and three. These should be taken to local hazardous waste collection.

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Please remember that electronic waste is not just a problem impacting the environment. It is also a problem impacting human rights/health!

References:

LinkBest Buy recycling information

Link E-Waste Facts (There are some alarming counters on this page if you want to cultivate a feeling of urgency!)

The Sylvan Hivə of Turbeaux

Edited:

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