India's Environment Problem: Disposing Electronic Waste
The high-pitched, nasal call of the neighborhood scrap collector is a familiar weekend sound in most Indian neighborhoods. In Noida, a quiet satellite city of New Delhi, Ashu Kumar has been collecting old newspapers, phones, computers, digital recorders and refrigerators for the past five years. And for years, at the end of each month, Kumar trekked down a dusty road to the Seelampur scrap market — the largest graveyard of India's ever growing electronic waste — to sell his wares. In India, yesterday's electronics are today's business, and Seelampur, about 9 miles (14.5 km) outside New Delhi, is the biggest scrap market in the country. On a typical day, visitors are greeted by piles of used goods, like the 50-ton mountain of old telephones that Mohammad Arif, a scrap trader, bought for $2,500 at an auction one winter morning. Most of that waste is bought from Indian consumers by scrap dealers and sold in underground recycling markets like Seelampur.
High-Tech Trash
June is the wet season in Ghana, but here in Accra, the capital, the morning rain has ceased. As the sun heats the humid air, pillars of black smoke begin to rise above the vast Agbogbloshie Market. I follow one plume toward its source, past lettuce and plantain vendors, past stalls of used tires, and through a clanging scrap market where hunched men bash on old alternators and engine blocks. Soon the muddy track is flanked by piles of old TVs, gutted computer cases, and smashed monitors heaped ten feet (three meters) high. Choking, I pull my shirt over my nose and approach a boy of about 15, his thin frame wreathed in smoke. Another day in the market, on a similar ash heap above an inlet that flushes to the Atlantic after a downpour, Israel Mensah, an incongruously stylish young man of about 20, adjusts his designer glasses and explains how he makes his living. People have always been proficient at making trash. So what happens to all this junk?
Radioactive leaks found at 75% of US nuke sites
Steam rises from cooling towers at Exelon Corp.'s nuclear plant in Byron, Ill., March 16, 2011. AP Photo BRACEVILLE, Ill. - Radioactive tritium has leaked from three-quarters of U.S. commercial nuclear power sites, often into groundwater from corroded, buried piping, an Associated Press investigation shows. The number and severity of the leaks has been escalating, even as federal regulators extend the licenses of more and more reactors across the nation. Tritium, which is a radioactive form of hydrogen, has leaked from at least 48 of 65 sites, according to U.S. While most leaks have been found within plant boundaries, some have migrated offsite. At three sites -- two in Illinois and one in Minnesota -- leaks have contaminated drinking wells of nearby homes, the records show, but not at levels violating the drinking water standard. U.S. nuke regulators weaken safety rulesFeds seek nuke plants' plans for terror attacksHigh radiation prompts evac at Ohio nuke plant Leaks Are Prolific
E-waste: The Environmental Crisis You've Never Heard Of
The E-Waste Crisis In 2008, 60 Minutes ran a piece revealing what actually happens to our old electronics when we throw them away. In The Wasteland, CBS correspondent Scott Pelley follows the trail of electronic waste (e-waste) all the way to China. Well, the short answer is worse. Yet, as eye-catching as these numbers are, the problem of e-waste has largely flown under the radar. As a society, we generally refuse to pay for things to be recycled. But here is the kicker, doing the wrong thing it isn’t actually free, and doing the right thing doesn’t have to be costly. This puts recyclers in a bind, and is largely why electronics is the fastest growing component of the municipal waste stream worldwide, according to Hershkowitz. This is where GreenCitizen steps in. Written by Jake Hanft.
Electronic waste
Defective and obsolete electronic equipment Electronic waste or e-waste describes discarded electrical or electronic devices. Used electronics which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling, or disposal are also considered e-waste. Electronic scrap components, such as CPUs, contain potentially harmful components such as lead, cadmium, beryllium, or brominated flame retardants. Definition[edit] Hoarding (left), disassembling (center) and collecting (right) electronic waste in Bengaluru, India "Electronic waste" or "E-Waste" may be defined as discarded computers, office electronic equipment, entertainment device electronics, mobile phones, television sets, and refrigerators. CRTs have relatively high concentration of lead and phosphors (not to be confused with phosphorus), both of which are necessary for the display. The EU and its member states operate a system via the European Waste Catalogue (EWC)- a European Council Directive, which is interpreted into "member state law".
E-Waste - Connecticut
"We have forgotten how to be good guests, how to walk lightly on the earth as its other creatures do." ~ Barbara Ward, Only One Earth, 1972 From the mining of the raw materials to the recycling or disposal of our electronic products, electronics have a significant impact on the environment. By considering the environment when you purchase, use and dispose of a computer, television, or other electronic device, you can conserve energy, help the environment and save money. Related Topics Why Recycle Electronics? Computers and televisions are only part of the consumer electronics waste stream which also includes VCRs, radios, cell phones, and small appliances. Careful disposal of these items is important because many electronic products contain hazardous components. Responsible recycling and disposal of e-waste can help prevent exploitation of people in lesser developed countries where much of the e-waste from the U.S. has historically been disposed. Recycling E-Waste from the Home General
World's mountain of electrical waste reaches new peak of 42m tonnes | Environment
A record amount of electrical and electronic waste was discarded around the world in 2014, with the biggest per-capita tallies in countries that pride themselves on environmental consciousness, a report said. Last year, 41.8m tonnes of so-called e-waste – mostly fridges, washing machines and other domestic appliances at the end of their life – was dumped, the UN report said. That’s the equivalent of 1.15m heavy trucks, forming a line 23,000km (14,300 miles) long, according to the report, compiled by the United Nations University, the UN’s educational and research branch. Less than one-sixth of all e-waste was properly recycled, it said. In 2013, the e-waste total was 39.8m tonnes – and on present trends, the 50-million-tonne mark could be reached in 2018. Topping the list for per-capita waste last year was Norway, with 28.4kg (62.5lbs) per inhabitant. The region with the lowest amount of e-waste per inhabitant was Africa, with 1.7kg per person.
