Hi Tech Waste
When discussing the issue of recycling it is always important to talk about the effect this has on the environment. When recycling computers it is also very important to recognize the amount of hazardous material in an actual computer. Not until the last few decades has this been an issue. Many people and many companies are upgrading their computers and the issue here is what to do with the old ones. Computers are put together very complexly. There are many materials that are needed to make a computer work and many of these are deemed hazardous to the environment. Lead, cadmium, and mercury are some of the materials that are found in computers and other electronic devices, and these substances are being added to landfills at an alarming rate.
The National Safety Council estimates that 300 million computers will be discarded by the year 2007. The recycling company BTTF estimates that 63 million computers will become obsolete in the year 2005. BTTF also estimates that ink cartridges for computers are being discarded at a rate of nearly eight per second. Another recycling company estimates that about 1 billion floppy disks, CD’s, and DVD’s are discarded of and eventually end up in landfills (Parsons, 104). This is important information because many people do not realize how harmful computer waste can be to the environment. With all these “old” parts of computers being thrown away at such a rapid rate it is critical to weigh your options for disposal because if everyone simply threw their old computers in the Wednesday trash we would have a problem in the very near future.
Most people don’t know that there are agencies and programs set up solely to discard of hazardous electronics. Therefore, most p...
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...e initiated the same sort of programs (Bartholomew).
The recycling of computers and other electronic devices is essential to the upkeep of our environment. With all the new computers and new versions of software that are coming out these days there are “old” ones as well that must be discarded of. It is important that the facts about this kind of electronic waste are presented to the public, and it is also important that consumers are presented with different options for disposal. As long as people start to realize how serious this issue is then there shouldn’t be any real problems in the near future.
Works Cited
1) www.Nepsi.com. April 2003. Journal of Environmental Health.
2) www.epa.gov. November 29, 2001. Recycling Computers Soon To Be Norm. David Roberts.
3) Computer Concepts. Thompson Learning Inc. 7th edition, 2004.
Even though electronic waste contributes one percent of waste as discussed earlier, it poses a significant threat to the environment. “RCRA does not, however, cover electronic waste except CRTs, nor does it regulate electronic devices donated for educational or charitable reuse.” The RCRA should implement rules to govern e-waste because e-waste not only affects lives in the United States, It affects everyone globally. E-waste typically finds its ways out of the United States and ends up in developing countries like
From an analysis of the cradle to grave process, it is evident that while the Macbook Pro is not a recyclable product, the product is valuable to consumers because of various technological advances. However, due to the increasing importance of environmentally safe product disposal, Apple will need to modify the manufacturing process to create a recyclable product. The Macbook Pro will become a more popular product if Apple maintains the high standards of technological development and incorporates a low environmental impact into the cradle to grave process.
...e are now regulations in place dealing with casings and other equipment (Regulations). If there were more regulations like this, there might be less breaks and les contamination. There might also be less spills or related accidents if there were more regulations on the disposing of these dangerous chemicals. How the chemicals are being disposed of should be monitored (Howells).
The article “Our E-Waste Problem Is Ridiculous, and Gadget Makers Aren’t Helping” by Christina Bonnington explains that our landfills are being filled with unused electronics of yesteryear. In 2011, there were 41.5 million tons of electronic wastes in landfills. In 2016, they projected the number to go up to 93.5 million tons. Specifically, our old products are in landfills now such as, HP computers, computer towers, cell phones, and batteries. The reason for all the waste is the human race is buying the newest electronics and not disposing of their unused and unwanted electronics properly. Also, not all of the unused electronics are recyclable. E-waste has a huge negative effect while in landfills because electronics breakdown and they breakdown
The article, “Our E-Waste Problem is Ridiculous, and Gadget Makers Aren’t Helping,” by Christina Bonnington, focused the process of electronic devices to be recycled, the challenges of recycling electronic waste, and making devices more recyclable. First, Bonnington described the recycling process. Depending on the condition on the product will determine if it will be reused or stripped down to be destroyed. According to the author, having a simpler design makes the reprocessing easier to bare the electronics for turning into materials. Next, the author mentioned the challenges of recycling. One challenge is how electronics are becoming more compact and tougher to strip apart to separate the materials. Conferring to Bonnington, batteries are
Reduce, recycle and recycle could be a construct that individuals area unit beginning to perceive and to use to each life round the world (GOV.UK, 2013). This knowledge base essay can explore info concerning use by totally different resources that are provided to use such as the web, books, journals and alternative resources that needs to offer American state info on use. This essay can discover use as business, environmental and policy perspective. Use is that the methodology by that we tend to recover valuable resources to be re-used once more and once more. However just one a part of healing the atmosphere, it's a sensible action that people altogether businesses participate in daily routines on recycling (Reclaim, 2013). While recycling is only one part to healing the environment it is a practical action that individuals in all businesses and people take part in every day.
Many people believe that we should not recycle anymore, but this is not the case. We, the people of the world, need to continue to recycle because we do not want our children to grow up in a world where there are no certain species of animals due to recycling failures. We also do not want our children to grow up thinking that it is okay that they throw their garbage on the ground, and not have to pick it up. We need to teach our children that they need to take care of the earth that they are living on, because they only get one. Recycling is one of the most beneficial environmental issues that we have here on this earth. Recycling saves energy, limits pollution and supports several environmental factors of the economy. “In 2003, the savings from recycling 54 billion aluminum cans exceeded the energy equivalent of 15 million barrels of crude oil- or the amount of gas the U.S. uses in one day,” according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA estimates that 200 million gallons of used oil are not disposed of properly, and if we were to dispose the oil properly then we could keep the oil from polluting the ground and the fresh water source. According to E. Takatori, “… While on-going societal regulation treats material recycling as the dominant cycle, the properties of recycled plastic remain the most port
Electronic waste, or any waste for that matter is an inevitable part of an economic system where the destruction of an ecosystem is the primarily source of resources that are used to create the product. The waste that occurs from this process has to be disposed of in some way and more often than not, it is disposed of carelessly with out consideration to the affect it would have on the environment or the very people that create and let capitalism live on, “The political economy approach also defers progress on environmental issues to a pint after economic ones are solved” (Robbins et al. 2010, 114). And if this continues there may be no place left for the excess waste created by capitalism.
“What Would Happen If People Didn’t Recycle?” The Online Gargoyle. Friday 1 July 2011. University of Illinois Board of Trustees. March 21,2014. http://uni.illinois.edu/og/opinions/2011/07/what-would-happen-if-people-didn-
Recycling is a six step process. First they must be cleaned and separated by the
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