Reducing E-Waste

How many phones have you had in your lifetime? I've had six, five of which I grew dissatisfied with and dumped for a newer model within a year, like Hugh Hefner with his wives.

Eventually I realized the impact my quest for a socially acceptable phone- from the once-cool slider to the emergence of touch screens- had, not just on the environment, but on people living in countries stripped and mined for technology. My stomach turns to think about the Windows laptops I went through from middle school on, as if they were Kleenex; towards the last day of term they'd break down irreparably, every year, without fail. I now type this on a first-edition Macbook, secondhand, still as fast as functional as ever. You can't say that about many Apple products anymore.

Over 135,000 cell phones and 31,300,000 computers are thrown away annually, thanks to upgrades, built-in obsolescence, and prohibitive costs of maintenance and repair. Add this to discarded refrigerators, telephone sets, radios, and other consumer electronics, all with built-in lifespans of five years or less, and we have 384,000,000 electronics being tossed out, not including DVDs and other media. Not only do these electronics contain known toxins, but the mining process leads to social and economic strife and wildlife deaths in countries far removed from us. 

---

From Baotou to Hong Kong, China's rare earth minerals are shaping up to be more of a resource curse than a blessing. A report released by China's cabinet reveals that "excessive rare earth mining has resulted in landslides, clogged rivers, environmental pollution emergencies and even major accidents and disasters, causing great damage to people's safety and health and the ecological environment," observed the New York Times. China is a hub of rare earth metals with more than a fifth of the world's rare earth reserves. However, it has depleted its most accessible reserves, transforming minerals into the latest iPad or iPhone. In Mongolia, this resulted in a 10 square km lagoon of radioactive runoff, covering a once fertile area of diverse crops. Sulphuric acid and coal dust coat the countryside, sickening animals and people, ruining fields where watermelon and eggplant once grew. 

Though the Chinese government has taken notice of the contaminated groundwater, toxic soil, and excessively depleted rare earth supply, local and regional governments still encourage mining. Critics note increasing federal regulation of rare earth mining in China may be subterfuge- simply a means of controlling production and profits while local people struggle to adapt to their degraded environment. Meanwhile, prolific amounts of electronic waste are sent to the so-called "developing" world for recycling, where environmental regulations are weak or non-existent. The "not in my backyard" mentality prevents domestic disposal of neurotoxin-and-carcinogen-laden electronics, so brokers send them overseas, where locals begin the life-threatening task of stripping the valuable metals contained within.  

---

These hazardous methods may cause disease and disability due to noxious gases produced by the stripping process. Workers in China, for instance- women and small children- are exposed to dangerous fumes and corrosives exhausted from toxic metals in electronic waste. Besides the social equity aspect, there are separate concerns as to the pollution and toxics involved in e-waste recycling, and the possibility these toxics may leach into soil, groundwater, and streams. Some countries are experimenting with bold federal initiatives aimed at targeting e-waste. In Switzerland, electronics are incinerated to produce energy for clean-burning factories outfitted with scrubbers that inhibit air pollution. This is funded by an advanced recycling fee, or tax, paid at the point of purchase. However, people recycling this waste may still be impacted. Electronics often emit dioxin when burned, which could evade containment methods. Further, mercury, cadmium, lead, barium oxide, and sulfur dioxide are generally present in electronic waste. Barium oxide in particular is absorbed rapidly in the body and can affect the nervous system permanently. The others are known carcinogens or impair neurological development, sometimes causing fatalities due to severe damage in the blood-forming, nervous, urinary, and reproductive systems.

---

Other contaminants expelled during the recycling process include mercury, PCB's, and organochlorine pesticides, which affect fish species and the humans who consume them. Often these toxics are known as persistent organic pollutants, endocrine disruptors to people and animals. The most immediate problem is to health, since emissions caused by the burning of unsalvageable materials, flame retardants, and heavy metals in open fields pollute the atmosphere, releasing carcinogenic compounds into the air. 

All things considered, what are the implications of the rate at which many countries use and discard electronics? Mass consumption and a throwaway mentality increase the need for overseas e-waste recycling, because all the junk has to go somewhere- but not in our neighborhoods. To mitigate this environmental woe, consumers must buy less, secondhand where possible, and buy better, such as choosing solar panel chargers or plastic free headphones and earbuds, instead of traditional items that only last a few months. A new law in France will force manufacturers to list how long their appliances will last, repairing or replacing faulty items for free within the first two years of purchase (Korea already has extended producer responsibility). Initiatives like Restart aim to educate consumers in basic electronic repairs. Just finished a Marie Kondo-style cleaning spree? Have a garage sale and list items on Freecycle or Craigslist instead of recycling, which should always be a last resort. Garage sales are my preferred method. People paid me for junk, then turned around and upcycled it into something wonderful and useful. Could you give unwanted electronics to someone in need? Make sure any organizations you donate to manage contributions wisely- some companies send items to brokers anyway. My favorite end-of-life-cycle destinations in Paris are the creative resourceries and recycleries. Eco-systèmes and Ou Recycler offer helpful guidance on how best to dispose of appliances and electronics. It also doesn't hurt to browse less, store fewer emails, and use search engines like Ecosia or sites like wwwaste.fr to calculate your digital footprint. Click here and here for tips on how to extend the life of electronics and here for a downloadable fact sheet. Click here to read about Fairphone, an ethical, conflict-free phone designed for longevity and repairability (thanks Anne for the tip!).

Sources

Arena, J. M. 2009. Poisoning - Toxicology - Symptoms - Treatments. 

Charles C. Thomas, Publisher, Bradsher, K. China, conceding errors, vows to overhaul rare earth industry. 
Cadmium. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/cadmium/index.html 

Mercury. Retrieved from http://www.epa.gov/hg/effects.htm 

Rare-earth mining in China comes at heavy cost for local villagers. Guardian Weekly. 

Wong M.H. (2003) Sources, fates and effects of persistent organic pollutants in China, with emphasis on the Pearl River Delta. In: Fielder H (ed) Persistent organic pollutants, The handbook of environmental chemistry, Vol. 3, Part O, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, pp. 355–369.