Electronic products are a serious solid-waste problem. Electronic equipment has been characterized as a fast growing category of municipal solid waste. Experts predict consumers will be replacing equipment more often in the future, leading to greater waste.
Electronic equipment contains toxic materials:
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• Printed circuit boards in computers, music players, and other devices contain toxic metals such as chromium, nickel, and zinc.
• Batteries may contain nickel and cadium.
• Relays, switches, and liquid crystal displays (LCDs) may contain mercury.
• Plastics used in many electronics also contain flame retardants that are toxic and persist in the environment.
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Not all the electronic equipment returned for recycling ends up at an appropriately managed facility. The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, an environmental advocacy group, has found that the majority of equipment is diverted to uncontrolled landfills or to unsafe recycling operations in developing countries. As a result, the local environment in those areas can become contaminated, and local residents, in an effort to reclaim valuable metal components, may be exposed to hazardous materials.
A coalition of environmental groups has recently established a voluntary program known as the Electronics Recycler's Pledge of True Stewardship. The recyclers agree not to export hazardous electronic components to developing countries, not to dispose of equipment in municipal landfills or incinerators unequipped to handle it, and not to use prison labor, among other things. The program is new, but the number of companies that have signed on is growing. Click here to see a list of recyclers that have signed the pledge.
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