The issue of E-Waste: Who is responsible?

ELECTRONIC WARFARE:

A BATTLE FOUGHT ON MANY FRONTS

The issue of E-Waste: Who is responsible?

by Emma Silverman

Picture this: you live surrounded by huge landfills of electronic waste - electronic devices/gadgets that are sold, donated, or discarded by their original owner – and every day, you breathe in toxic chemicals that come from that hazardous waste. Due to pollution and high levels of toxicity in your city, you can neither drink the local water nor eat the local produce and most people around you suffer from cancer, lung disease or other health problems. As bad as that sounds, some people don’t need to picture it because, as a result of e-waste, those are the conditions they live in. Who is responsible for the landfills of e-waste in underdeveloped countries? Read more to find out!

Why so much e-waste in the first place?

Before discussing other culprits, we must discuss why there are so many electronic devices/gadgets that are being disposed of in the first place. To make as much profit as possible, producers such as Apple, Google and Samsung use planned obsolescence, a business strategy in which the company’s products are designed to become unusable or unfashionable after a determined amount of time. By doing so, the company ensures that the consumer purchases new products and services from the producer. It also causes more e-waste to be made, for if this strategy wasn’t used, products would last much longer and therefore fewer electronics would be thrown out.

[pic 1]Exporting electronics and bad health  

E-waste traders contribute to the problem by sending millions of tons of hazardous waste to developing countries to be recycled. However, because e-waste disposal industries use unsustainable methods to recuperate various materials (such as burning materials or washing them with acids), toxic chemicals trapped in the electronic devices are released into the air. These horrible working conditions cause workers hired in those industries to suffer terrible health conditions. On top of that, not only are workers affected by this industry, but the whole local population is affected as well because the water and soil are full of toxins such as mercury and lead.[pic 2]

With great technology comes great responsibility

Politicians have the power to put an end to e-waste trade or at least minimize it. The Canadian government has recently made some progress, with, for example, the enforcement in 1992 of the Basel Convention that makes hazardous waste exportations without consent from other countries illegal. Nevertheless, according to “Shift Recycling, “E-Waste Problem"”, about 50% of e-waste in Canada still ends up in uncontrolled, backyard recycling operations. The government must find the courage to stand up to large corporations and better enforce the law.[pic 3]

Defeating e-waste: What can we do about it?

Recently, chemical engineer Mike Biddle has managed to find a way to separate plastics, and therefore to recycle them. His discovery can help reduce the amount of e-waste: since he is capable of separating plastics, the waste can be given to him to recycle instead of being dumped in developing countries. We as consumers can help as well and do our share by buying less. While corporations deserve the brunt of the blame, it is our responsibility to inform others of the problem and encourage the government to adopt and enforce more ambitious environmental laws.

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