Did you know!!!
Landfill: More than 4.6 million tons of e-waste ended up in U.S. landfills
Incineration:This releases heavy metals such as lead, cadmium and mercury into the air and ashes. The toxic materials in electronics can cause cancer, reproductive disorders, endocrine disruption, and many other health problems if this waste stream is not properly managed.
Export: An estimated 70-80% of the e-waste that’s given to recycler's is exported to countries with developing economies, in effect externalizing the real costs of managing hazardous waste and products.
Guiyu in the Shantou region of China is a huge electronic waste processing area “e-waste capital of the world.” The city employs over 150,000 e-waste workers that work through 16-hour days disassembling old computers and recapturing whatever metals and parts they can reuse or sell. Uncontrolled burning, disassembly, and disposal causes a variety of environmental problems such as groundwater contamination, atmospheric pollution, or even water pollution either by immediate discharge or due to surface runoff (especially near coastal areas), as well as health problems including occupational safety and health effects among those directly and indirectly involved, due to the methods of processing the waste.
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