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leahesper

Electronic Recycling Market 2019 Industry Outlook, Market Dynamics and Forecast by 2024... - 0 views

  • The Global Electronic Recycling Market is expected to exceed more than US$ 114 billion by 2024 and will grow at a CAGR of more than 23% in the given forecast period.
  • Computer recycling, electronic recycling or e-waste recycling is the disassembly and separation of additives and raw materials of waste electronics.
  • Despite the fact that the methods of re-use, donation and restore aren't strictly recycling. They're different common sustainable approaches to eliminate it waste.
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  • Digital recycling helps to recover valuable metals by means of making sure that toxic and dangerous substance are handled well thereby minimizing the environmental effect associated with mining.
  • Even though recycling of e-waste pose clean blessings, loss of recycling cognizance and regulatory infrastructure have resulted to low recycling price.
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    This press release article talks about how the Global Electronic Recycling Market is segmented on the lines of its type of processed material, type of equipment, source of equipment and regional. I find this interested because after watching the videos from this weeks module, my eyes have been opened to a world I once didn't know about. Computer recycling, electronic recycling or e-waste recycling aren't really recycling. This article is interesting to me because now I have knowledge of what really goes on behind the scenes.
azephyr

Hotel Recycling Program: Benefits of Ewaste Recycling in Hospitality - 0 views

  • Hotel Recycling Program: Benefits of Ewaste Recycling in Hospitality
  • Does Recycling in the Hotel Industry Include E-waste?
  • With thousands of customers checking in each year, at a business that operates 24 hours a day, hotels are more likely to be replacing their office electronics more frequently.
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  • As technology keeps advancing, creating newer and more sophisticated versions of older devices, consumers have been all too quick to discard the electronics they own now. That means the amount of e-waste that’s been tossed out and sent to landfills is skyrocketing.
  • the UN, environmental groups and governments around the world are working to promote the recycling of e-waste as the best solution.
  • Electronic recycling is the specialty of Great Lakes Electronics Corporation, which has years of experience performing environmentally friendly recycling of electronic products. Great Lakes Electronics Corporation will disassemble these items into component parts, and the ones that still have value can be sold for reuse. Other parts are used for metals recovery, and everything is recycled.
  • Once a used electronic device is sent to an experienced recycling firm like Great Lakes Electronics Corporation, it keeps those devices out of landfills, and the parts with value can be used by manufacturers to create new products.
  • Recycling is a great way to make a long-term contribution to our environment, and recycling aging office equipment and electronics should be near the top of their list.
  • Estimates are that the world produces up to 50 million tonnes of e-waste every year from consumers and businesses throwing out everything from smartphones to computers to household and office appliances, material believed to still be worth $62.5 billion. But only a small percentage of the e-waste — which contains valuable and reusable materials like metals and rare earth, never gets recycled.
  • In fact, estimates are that hotels have the opportunity to recycle as much as 50-60% of their total waste stream. And recycling can help hotels reduce the high cost of managing their waste.
  • They also need to monitor their recycling programs on a regular basis, carefully track the volume and types of recyclables they process, and continue to refine their recycling programs by encouraging feedback from employees and guests, making changes where necessary.
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    Hotels are more likely to replace their electronics more often because they are using them every day and they are trying to be up-to-date to be able to provide the best experience to the customers. Therefore, the number of computers that people are throwing away is too big and hard to count. Great Lakes Electronics Corporation is providing electronic recycling programs that are environmental friendly.
kmill139

Why the U.S. is Terrible at Recycling Electronics | Digital Trends - 0 views

  • E-waste in the United States is out of control.
  • You may assume America has to at least be on par with the rest of the first world when finding a forever home for computers, phones, and printers, but you’d be wrong.
  • Those millions of old motherboards and TVs consoles rotting in landfills and warehouses aren’t just eyesores. They amount to a massive health hazard. While electronics waste comprises only 2-3 percent of America’s solid waste stream, the lead, cadmium, chromium, and other materials in aging circuitry account for 70 percent of the hazardous material in landfills, according to an EPA report.
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  • Others go belly up, leaving behind millions of pounds of old gadgets piled in mountainous heaps atop land which has lead levels many times normal.
  • You’re probably not screaming into a paper bag about the $20 billion or so of gold that’s trashed in electronics every year worldwide. Precious metals come and go. But if you care about the soil that comprises the land of the brave, you should start thinking about what happened to last year’s smartphone (even if it’s just sitting in the garage).
  • This list of reasons isn’t exhaustive, but serves as a solid starting point for understanding the United States’ e-waste dilemma and what can be done.
  • U.S. e-waste recycling laws are often outdated or nonexistent
  • Only 25 states (plus Washington, D.C.) have legislation that addresses e-waste recycling. The other 25 don’t have comprehensive programs, and don’t report what happens to the electronics beyond occasional voluntary numbers, says Jason Linnell, head of the National Center for Electronics Recycling (NCER). Federal laws don’t explicitly address e-waste recycling.
  • The U.S. isn’t good at recycling
  • The current level and effectiveness of e-waste recycling depends on which state you live in and whether or not you trust locals to “do the right thing.” The hope for improvement sits with congressional reps, state lawmakers, manufacturers, and gadget freaks (yes, you).
  • Single-stream recycling hasn’t helped
  • Between 2005 and 2014, single stream recycling programs increased from 29 to 80 percent in American towns and cities. During that same time period, material contamination rates increased from 7 to 25 percent.
  • E-waste legislation regularly disappears in Congress
  • This is not the first Congressional session in which similar bills have been introduced and allowed to die like a first grade classroom goldfish on summer break. SEERA currently sits with the house’s Foreign Affairs Committee. Why is it so tough to pass e-waste legislation?
  • The U.S. is an environmental rogue
  • As of late 2018, 186 states and the European Union have ratified it and follow its legal framework. The United States has signed the Basel Convention, indicating an intent to ratify, but is the only developed nation that hasn’t actually done so, which
  • After the initial Basel Convention was adopted in 1989, many organizations said the treaty didn’t do enough to address the disposal of waste from first world countries into the developing world, and pressed for an update, which eventually became 1995’s Basel Ban Amendment. The tweak — which was attacked by many industrial powers, including the U.S., Canada, and Japan — needed three decades before it was accepted by enough countries to go into effect. In August 2019, Croatia became the 97th country to ratify it, which transformed the updated stipulations into international law in December 2019.
  • EPA regulations are incomplete
  • Federal attempts at regulation have stalled, been killed
  • U.S. pushes back against international efforts
  • As a part of the 2003 Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE Directive), the public was guaranteed free recycling services, and conveniently located collection centers. Around the same time, the EU also passed the Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive (RoHS), aka the “lead-free directive,” which restricts the use of several toxic materials in the manufacture of circuitry and electronic products.
  • In Japan, the Association for Electric Home Appliances requires consumers to help pay for the processing of their goods and manufacturers to set up recycling programs. Electronics recycling has been promoted as such a point of national pride — because Japan is both a huge consumer of gadgets and the country has few indigenous precious metals — that there’s serious talk of making the 2020 Tokyo Olympic metals out of recycled materials. An estimated 80,000 cell phones need to be pulled apart and picked over to complete the plan.
  • State-level e-cycling programs are uneven
  • Certified e-cycling programs are important, but also confusing
  • If you’re the compliance officer who has to make sure the company’s used servers don’t wind up getting tossed in an Indonesian landfill, and you won’t have to nervously answer questions in a “60 Minutes” exposé, you probably want to get that e-waste removed by a disposal team with one of these
  • That all sounds great until you listen to Puckett, who helped create the e-Stewards protocols. He’s one of several people who took part in the development of R2 for over two years and then refused to continue when the proposed guidelines seemed to be too tainted by lobbyists, including ones at the Institute of Scrap Recycling (ISRI), an organization that favors a free market approach over regulation. Puckett and 13 recyclers created e-Stewards, which describes itself as the “the cleanest, most globally responsible standard for e-waste recycling.” He points out that the R2 certification still allows recyclers to export to developing countries. E-Stewards’ doesn’t. R2 recyclers can drop toxic e-waste in landfills or incinerators in the event of “circumstances beyond their
  • Scrap recycling lobby doesn’t like regulations
  • The announcer proudly explains e-cycling is a vibrant industry that adds 20.6 billion to the U.S. economy and supports 45,000 jobs domestically, “safeguarding our environment,” along the way.
  • Can anything be done? Possibly
  • Recycling isn’t the only answer for fewer landfills filled with decaying circuits. Chris Wellise, Chief Sustainability Officer for Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), which installs and recovers tech, emphasizes the importance of designing products for longevity, disassembly, and reuse.
  • “On average, 85 percent of the environmental impacts can be addressed in the design phase,” estimates Wellise.
  • Similar challenges exist for smartphones. Review IFixit’s guide for repairability and you can expect the phones that are easy to disassemble are also easier to refurbish or scrap. In an unusual display of transparency, eco-minded electronics company Fairphone sells spare parts on its site and has visual cues printed on the pieces to help novices figure out where everything goes. In case you’re wondering, it’s possible to make a Fairphone work in America, but most of the company’s sales are in Europe.
  • In 2018, Apple gave birth to Daisy, a robot that can disassemble 200 of the company’s phones in an hour — 1.2 million a year. The company has an installation of the machine in Austin, Texas, and another in the Netherlands. Daisy’s supply chain of used products comes from the company’s in-store trade-in program and a partnership with Best Buy.
  • Pretty awe-inspiring, right? Keep in mind that Apple sold over 217 million phones just in 2018 and has moved 2.2 billion iPhone units since the product line launched in 2007. The two Daisy divisions aren’t even working at capacity. Apple is willing to license the robot technology so any company can use it to disassemble phones, but none have approached them yet.
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    "Maybe it's easy to ignore the huge percentage of vintage gadgets that wind up torched in dicey scrap heaps in developing countries". This article was written on Feb-27-2020. The problem we saw on the old video is still very much a problem now, only bigger.
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    This article was super informative in the realm of E-waste. It covered every aspect of the issue and most definitely is relevant in today's world.
jchac014

LG Electronics Partners with Hilton Hotels to Recycle Old TVs - 1 views

  • TVs are the largest contributor to electronic waste, which is one of the fastest-growing waste streams in the world.
  • To address this issue, Hilton Hotels recently teamed with LG Electronics to create a TV recycling pilot program.
  • The need for an e-waste recycling solution is urgent. Not only is the waste prevalent, but it’s also toxic.
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  • “Hilton is committed to minimizing waste by providing our properties with a sustainable solution for the proper disposal of their existing TV sets rather than sending them to a landfill where they can leak harmful substances in the environment,” says Judy Pines, director of sustainability and responsible sourcing at Hilton.
  • Working together, Hilton Hotels, LG and GSS recycled nearly 400 older flat-panel hotel TVs from the Hilton Newark Airport.
  • Each recycled TV set was replaced with a new 43-inch Energy Star certified LG flat screen TV. The program was successfully executed in four days and had a minimal impact on guests.  
  • The old TVs were transported to an e-Stewards-certified recycling facility in New York, where they were manually taken apart and sorted into various components. “Parts that cannot be dismantled efficiently are shredded into smaller e-waste pieces and eventually broken down even further,”
  • TVs contain valuable and reusable materials such as plastics, copper, gold and glass and approximately 99 percent of the TV components can be repurposed into new electronics
  • One option is a turnkey solution that includes the installation of new TVs, the removal of old TVs (50 unit minimum), TV programming and transportation to a recycling facility. The second option is for recycling services only and includes the removal of the old TVs and transportation of the old TVs to an e-recycler.
  • In addition to partnering with Hilton Hotels, LG has focused on making responsible recycling a priority.
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    TVs are the largest contributors to electronic waste. Electronic waste recycling solution is urgent because the waste is toxic. LG partnered with Hilton Hotels for a recycling program to efficiently recycle their old TVs without sending them to a landfill or somewhere overseas. Through the program, recycled TVs were replaced with newer 43" Energy Star certified LG flat screen TVs.
vickychapas2021

10 Things You Should Know About Recycling Electronics - 1 views

  • The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that only 15 to 20 percent of e-waste is recycled,
  • the rest of these electronics go directly into landfills, incinerators and are illegally exported to developing countries
  • These foreign junkyards hire low-wage employees to pick through the few valuable components of often toxic old machines.
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  • The E-cycling Central website allows users to select their state and city to find a trusted recycler nearest them.
  • Reuse is always more environmentally sound and will give devices an extra couple years of usability.
  • One is called the e-Stewards Standard for Responsible Recycling and Reuse of Electronic Equipment, known as e-Stewards, and the other is called Responsible Recycling (R2) Practices, known as R2.
  • If an electronics recycler has either one of these certifications they are typically more trustworthy than a recycler without one.
  • With that being said, it is best to recycle your electronics as soon as you know you are done using them.
  • Before you recycle or donate your computer or cell phone, be sure to erase your data from the device.
  • CRT TV’s, printers, cartridges and many large home appliances are dangerous to recycle, so consumers should expect to pay a small fee to recycle them.
  • Don’t throw nickel cadmium batteries in the garbage! They’re made from poisonous materials that can harm the environment—and they also need to be recycled.
  • cell phone batteries can be used to make new smartphones and batteries, while zinc and aluminum from laptops and tablets can be used for metal plates, jewelry, cars or art.
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    This article explains what e-waste is and how we as consumers can help recycle our e-waste. We should recycle products we know we won't use anymore because technology depreciates. When we decide to recycle our e-waste we should ensure that they are reputable. Throwing certain things in the garbage is toxic to the environment and thus we should make sure to recycle all technology instead of tossing it into the landfill.
alo328

Electronic Waste Is Becoming a Global Environmental Problem | Time - 1 views

  • s a tech-hungry nation flush with cash gets ready to upgrade to the next generation of lightning-fast 5G devices, there is a surprising environmental cost to be reckoned with: a fresh mountain of obsolete gadgets. About 6 million lb
  • Workers with hammers hack at the bulkiest devices, while others remove dangerous components like lithium-ion batteries
  • That cycle of consumption has made electronics waste the world’s fastest-growing s
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  • “In our society, we always have to have the new, best product,” said Aaron Blum, the co-founder and chief operating officer of ERI, on a tour of the facility
  • 5G promises faster speeds and other benefits. But experts say it will also result in a dramatic increase in e-waste, as millions of smartphones, modems and other gadgets incompatible with 5G networks are made obsolete
  • But less than a quarter of all U.S. electronic waste is recycled, according to a United Nations estimate. The rest is incinerated or ends up in landfills
  • Environmental concerns aside, compacting flammable lithium-ion batteries with paper recycling can be dangerous; recycling centers have reported an uptick in fires
  • Even when e-waste rules exist, it’s left up to consumers to handle their old devices prop
  • ly. But recycling them can be a
  • We don’t necessarily have the measures to make sure people aren’t throwing it away,” Walters said.
  • One solution is to make electronics last as long as they once did. At ERI’s facility, Shegerian showed TIME dozens of televisions from the 1970s and 1980s that stopped working only recently
  • Our products today don’t last as long as they used to, and it’s a strategy by manufacturers to force us in
  • o shorter and shorter upgrade cycles,” said Kyle Wiens, the founder of iFixit
  • Some environmental groups say multibillion-dollar companies like Apple and Samsung should pick up the cost of recycling the devices they sell. Lawmakers in parts of Europe and Canada and in some U.S. states have passed so-called Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws, which require manufacturers to establish and fund systems to recycle or collect obsolete products
  • Even so, some companies are increasing their recycling efforts on their own, whether for the economic benefit or the public relations boost (mining fresh materials has financial, environmental and human costs of its own). For instance, Apple in 2018 introduced Daisy, a smartphone-recycling robot that can take apart 200 iPhones every hour, and says it diverted 48,000 metric tons of electronic waste from landfills that year
  • About 6 million lb. of discarded electronics are already processed monthly at recycling giant ERI’s Fresno plant.
  • Americans spent $71 billion on telephone and communication equipment in 2017, nearly five times what they spent in 2010 even when adjusted for inflation, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. (Apple alone sold 60 million iPhones domestically last year, according to Counterpoint Research.)
  • That stream is expected to turn into a torrent as the world upgrades to 5G, the next big step in wireless technology.
  • Part of the problem is regulatory. Only 19 states have laws banning electronics from the regular trash. In states without such rules, like Nevada, electronics often end up in garbage and recycling bins, said Jeremy Walters, a community-relations manager for waste collector Republic Services
  • Our products today don’t last as long as they used to, and it’s a strategy by manufacturers to force us into shorter and shorter upgrade cycles,”
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    Advancement in technology every day has led to the dumping of electronic gadgets no longer wanted to the environment. Heaps of unwanted electronic waste, hazardous containing substances like lithium-ion batteries, are dumped into the ground with all their toxicology. As the world upgrades to 5G, it will end in a rapid surge in e-waste. According to John Shegerian thinks people are yet to see the magnitude of the transition to 5G, it is tremendous than changing from analog to digital (Samuels & Calif, 2019). However, it comes with many advantages; its outcome is a drastic rise in electronic waste. The ERI recycles less than a quarter of the United States' e-waste according to the estimate made by the United Nations, and the other dumped in landfills. This waste contains harmful metals such as beryllium and mercury, that have adverse environmental dangers. Among the 50 states in the United States, only 19 States have imposed a law to bun electronics from regular trash (Samuels & Calif, 2019); the rest of the states, like Nevada they are incorporated in recycling and trash bins, according to Jeremy Walters's manager for waste collection. The consumers are left to handle their e-waste even though there are e-waste rules. Multibillion companies should the responsibility and cater for the cost of recycling for the products they are manufacturing. Companies like Apple and Samsung, nonetheless the United States is repelling modifications to the prevailing laws, according to Scott Cassel Product Stewardship Institute found. However, some companies are improving through increasing their recycling efforts. For instance, Daisy, a recycling robot introduced by Apple, can collect more than 200 iPhones for recycling every hour. But this is not enough since e-waste generated annually globally is more than we can imagine, which almost 50 tons (Samuels & Calif, 2019). In a nutshell, technology can bring many benefits to society. Still, it can also harm both the environment and the p
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    the article explores the dangers of elctronic waste and give suggestions on how to better monitor this issue and resolve.
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    This article explains how the rapid advancement of technology has impulsed an increase in the use of technology, however has resulted in a rise in ewaste percentage. This happens because companies have opted for creating products that do not last for long periods of time, since they want to sell future products.
jsanc478

Getting E-waste Right | Green Lodging News - 8 views

  • In the past decade, televisions have grown bigger, then flatter, then bigger again. The emphasis is on the new: buy now, because your old television is clearly, decidedly obsolete.
  • The demand for the current and the top of the line strikes a chord especially in the hospitality industry.
  • equal to, or greater than, those offered by their competitors.
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  • The result is a product cycle that matches the pace of innovation:
  • Between consumers and businesses, an estimated 50 million tons of electronic waste is disposed of each year. Some of that is recycled properly. The rest is not.
  • Nearly 400 million units of consumer electronics are sold per year. Relatively light regulations and recycling standards result in th
  • Multiple Solutions for Hoteliers Despite the doom and gloom, there are a multitude of solutions to the hospitality industry’s e-waste problem.
  • The remaining 86.4 percent made its way into landfills,
  • Old TVs and computer monitors contain lead, cadmium and brominated flame retardants; all of which are hazardous to personal and environmental well-being.
  • 90 percent of the e-waste that is recycled is sent overseas.
  • Developing countries have become ground zero for e-waste collection
  • . According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, only 13.6 percent of all e-waste was recycled properly in 2007
  • That hotels upgrade their televisions is not an issue as long as their existing units are recycled properly
  • It starts with awareness:
  • Then hoteliers can move to change a different statistic:
  • , hoteliers should seek out domestic recyclers and take care of their e-waste recycling with proven, safe commodities.
  • Environmentally responsible, eco-savvy hotels are in vogue right now, appealing to customers with promises of sustainable travel and accommodation
  • Sustainable building materials, recycling services and even linen reuse programs are tangible ways for guests to see that their hosts are eco-conscious.
  • Green Hospitality with a Backbone
  • Green hospitality makes money, but it mustn’t be without a backbone.
  • Actual green hospitality outweighs the appearance of green hospitality
  • organizations hop on the sustainability bandwagon, it is more important than ever that recycling becomes permanent,
  • This means actively looking for and implementing recycling solutions, not simply shipping our problems overseas.
  • e recycle and reuse more than ever. B
  • E-waste recycling, for most people and companies, is not a day-to-day occurrence, which means we should be ready to handle it when the time comes
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    This article is based on how we can improved e-wastes on doing little changes that will benefit on our future. Most of the e-waste is not recycle properly, we buy things after things and more after more, every time a new technology comes up there is the motivation on buying what is the lasted cool technology, and what about what we have , where does it go ? to the trash or recycle, but we do not know where that recycling goes, I believe learning more about it will help on our routine of how to recycle better and help with this process to proceed right.
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    We quickly move to 'next' as far as technology goes and rarely think about how to get rid of it when obsolete. In the Caribbean for example, there are not may recycling plants for e-waste, in fact, many rarely do recycling on a whole. In the Turks and Caicos, disposing of a television or a phone is as simple as throwing it in the trash among everything else. What happens next? It goes into the landfills and there they lie. Imagine the toxic waste from over 40,000 inhabitants on a small island. While moving with the crowd seems to be the way of the world, I believe government entities must act swiftly in ensuring e-waste is disposed of correctly to preserve this island and its inhabitants for generations to come. The technology should not outpace the disposal thereof.
anonymous

Our E-Waste Problem Is Ridiculous, and Gadget Makers Aren't Helping | WIRED - 1 views

  • Oh sure, many companies have green initiatives. Apple in particular has made notable, documented efforts to reduce its carbon footprint, powering a majority of its retail stores and data centers with renewable energy, developing more efficient packaging design, and designing products that use less power than their predecessors. But if your products are going to be tossed out in a year, none of that is particularly brag-worthy. That’s a tremendous amount of wasted resources.
  • In the past, computers were designed to be relatively easy to disassemble, like HP’s towers and older versions of the Mac Mini. You could swap out dead parts and batteries, add more memory if it got sluggish, even replace a motherboard. But in the mid-2000s, things started to change. Apple introduced the ultra-thin, ultra-light MacBook Air and the industry enthusiastically followed with heaping helpings of devices that, while slim, were very difficult to repair due to the construction compromises required to achieve that svelte profile. Smartphones and tablets followed with an even faster purchasing and chucking cycle.
  • Therefore, the easier it is to disassemble something, the more likely it is to be worth someone’s time to recycle it. And that’s where issues arise
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  • “The big problem the electronics industry is facing as a whole is products are getting lighter and lighter,” iFixit’s Kyle Wiens said. “This is great for consumers but a nightmare for recyclers.” Smaller, lighter products can be tricky to take apart, and yield a lower volume of raw materials.
  • Glue and adhesives are a common hurdle. Products like the iPad and Microsoft Surface achieve a slim form factor by using “a metric duckload of adhesive,” as Wiens once put it, particularly to keep the battery in place. All that glue must be removed before any recyclable material can be melted down. And battery recycling is risky endeavorin the best of circumstances—under the right conditions, a damaged battery can cause a fiery explosion. Tack onto that the need to painstakingly pry a battery from its glue-smeared lodging and you’ve got a delicate task indeed. For items with a lot of glue, like a tablet display, Sims Recycling Solutions heats the glue, then uses suction cups to apply pressure across the glass so it can be removed without cracking. Other things that can make a product more challenging to recycle include the number of screws (particularly non-standard screws), the inclusion of hazardous materials like mercury (which is declining, due to the rising popularity of LEDs instead of bulbs), large amounts of glass, and plastics. Waterproof and tightly sealed products also are more arduous to deal with.
  • As we rush headlong into a world in which we’re disposing of more and more gadgets each year, making them easily recyclable should be a growing priority of device makers. Just as display size, processor speed and energy efficiency are marketing points, so too should recyclability.
  • David Thompson, Panasonic’s head of environmental affairs, says the standardization of screws and plastic resin materials, not thermally setting screws in plastic, and minimizing the use of glue will boost recycling efforts, as will designing products for easier disassembly. Would consumers really decry, or even notice, these changes? Probably not. But such changes could require concessions to slim dimensions and light weight. And for manufacturers, increased standardization may mean fewer distinctions between competing products. Take a plastic smartphone housing: Currently there are hundreds of variations (soft touch, textures, and metallic colors, to name a few). Standardization could limit that very marketable variety. Even so, some products are embracing such ideals. Dell won The Institute for Scrap Recycling Industries 2014 Design for Recycling award for the Latitude 10 and XPS 10 tablets and Latitude E7240 notebook. Aside making its products cheap and easy to recycle, Dell has used nearly 8 million pounds of recycled plastic in its desktop and display production. And it is not alone.
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    I found an interesting article about how the big computer companies can recycle the computers. This can solve some of the main problem about the recycling. The article is referring to idea that computers may become bigger size but easier to recycle. In other words we might wanna make a step back in the past, when we was able to just replace one detail from the computer instead of throwing it away.
lderi004

Waste Management And LG Provide Hotel Operators New Sustainability Option, Convenient D... - 0 views

  • The leading provider of flat-panel HDTVs to the lodging industry, LG Electronics USA, Inc., and the nation's leading recycler, Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE: WM), today announced the first recycling program for hotel operators to responsibly dispose of outdated television sets and computer monitors.
  • To support this growing trend, LG Electronics will now offer environmentally conscious hotel, motel and resort operators a convenient, cost-effective opportunity for recycling the obsolete hotel TVs.
  • "This program will encourage hotel operators to dispose of outdated electronics in an environmentally responsible manner," said Teddy Hwang, president, LG Electronics USA, which established its successful nationwide electronics-recycling program for consumers with Waste Management over a year ago
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  • The hotel TVs and computer monitors collected under this program will be processed in an environmentally responsible manner at one of four regionally designated Waste Management recycling facilities that are ISO 14001 and 9001 certified to protect the local environment in those communities along with the people handling this waste.
  • "As the lodging industry seeks to increase its environmentally conscious initiatives, the LG program gives hotel operators the opportunity to conveniently recycle electronic waste responsibly and economically," said Patrick DeRueda, president of WM Recycle America.
  • "By recycling used, unwanted, obsolete or damaged electronic equipment, useful materials such as glass, metals and plastics may be recovered for reuse in other products," he said.
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    This article caught my attention because it was not just the Waste Management service offering a new sustainable option for hotels, but an actual electronics provider as well, LG. It appears that since 2009, LG has been partnering with Waste Management, and helping hotels dispose of their old electronics, such as older LG tv models, in a much safer and environment friendly way. This gives hotels no excuse to not dispose, or recycle, electronics in a safer manner. I believe a partnership like this is a perfect demonstration of a social responsible company, who is aware and active of the damages their products can make toward the world. I hope more electronic companies start partnering up like this; as it brings awareness, and convenience to not just hotels, but many industries that use, and frequently update, electronic devices. 
kyleemcroberts

Going Beyond E-Waste Recycling - Human-I-T - 0 views

  • 25 states have enacted legislation establishing a statewide electronic waste, or E-waste, recycling program.
  • The multitude of state laws can make proper disposal unclear for many who have never recycled old electronics.
  • The confusion can lead to mismanaging E-waste recycling and negatively impact existing programs
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  • California’s Electronic Waste and Recycling Act of 2003 established four main purposes to manage the growing amount of E-waste.
  • facilitate the collection and recycling of covered devices,”
  • intends to eliminate E-waste stockpiles
  • make manufacturers report their efforts to increase the use of recycled materials.
  • end the illegal disposal of covered electronic devices
  • we need to focus more on reusing and donating electronics to a greater cause
  • Only twenty-five states have passed legislation in the last fourteen years.
  • E-waste is changing rapidly and legislation hasn’t kept up with the demand.
  • Encouraging reuse can simultaneously reduce E-waste in landfills and bridge the digital divide in low-income communities
  • Recycling centers don’t always recycle your old devices. It has been well documented (here and here) that most of them ship old electronics to other countries that don’t have strict environmental laws.
garz14

What Can We Do About the Growing E-waste Problem? - 3 views

    • tcale003
       
      China recently banned other countries from sending e-waste to them. E-Waste is comprised of many toxic materials such as lead, mercury, cadmium and beryllium which are very harmful to people and the environment. Many new technologies for biodegradable electronics are being looked at and there is even an EcoAtm in some U.S. states for people to recycle their small electronic devices.
  • When China banned 24 kinds of solid waste last September, countries such as the U.S., the United Kingdom, Australia, and Japan realized they had a big problem. Until last year, China accepted 70 percent of the world’s electronic waste—discarded computers, cell phones, printers, televisions, microwaves, smoke alarms, and other electronic equipment and parts.
  • After China stopped accepting this e-waste out of concern for its environment, Europe and North America began shipping more of it to Southeast Asia—but now Vietnam and Thailand, whose ports have been overwhelmed, are curbing imported e-waste as well.
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  • In 2016, the world’s population discarded 49 million tons of e-waste
  • It’s estimated that by 2021, that number will grow to more than 60 million tons.
  • Electronic devices are made of a complex mix of materials that include gold, silver, copper, platinum, palladium, lithium, cobalt and other valuable elements.
  • But electronic devices also comprise toxic heavy metals like lead, mercury, cadmium and beryllium, polluting PVC plastic, and hazardous chemicals, such as brominated flame retardants, which can harm human health and the environment.
  • A recent study in China found that mining copper, gold and aluminum from ore costs 13 times more than recovering the metals through the urban mining of e-waste. The state of e-waste recycling Recycling e-waste is practiced both formally and informally.
  • onmental hazards, however, many people in developing countries earn a living by dismantling, refurbishing, repairing and reselling used electronic devices.
  • As a result, many companies and countries illegally export their e-waste to developing countries where recycling is cheap
  • Research has found that inhaling toxic chemicals and direct contact with hazardous e-waste materials (even in some formal e-waste recycling settings) result in increases in spontaneous abortions, stillbirths, premature births, reduced birth weights, mutations, congenital malformations, abnormal thyroid function, increased lead levels in blood, decreased lung function, and neurobehavioral disturbances. Moreover, e-waste toxins contaminate the air, soil and groundwater. In the face of these health and envir
  • n the face of these health and en
  • mally.
  • In addition to its health hazards, informal recycling can pose security risks, because while formal recyclers in the U.S. usually require wiping devices clean of data, informal recycling does not.
  • Criminals search e-waste for credit card numbers and other financial information.
  • In order to reduce e-waste, manufacturers need to design electronics that are safer, and more durable, repairable and recyclable. Most importantly, this means using less toxic materials.
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    This article introduces what is e-waste and the main reason for the surge in e-waste. It also introduced the current recycling status of e-waste and the harm caused by the informal recycling of e-waste, such as heavy metal poisoning and financial information leakage. In addition, measures to address the proliferation of e-waste were also discussed.
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    It has become necessary for more proper and formal recycling of e-waste as it is economical and environmentally beneficial for companies. China decided to accept less e-waste from other counties and as a result there is more e waste going to other countries in south east Asia damaging their environments.
samanthapoorman

How to Recycle Old Electronics - Consumer Reports - 0 views

  • 1.5 billion cell phones were bought in 2017. That’s around one for every five people alive.
  • 44.7 million tons of e-waste was discarded in 2016, and only 20 percent of it was disposed of properly
  • Ask Apple: The company says it re-captured 2,204 pounds of gold—worth $40 million—from recycled devices in 2015.
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  • Also, many cities and towns sponsor collection days for electronics
  • electronics products can also contain toxic substances, such as lead, mercury, and cadmium
  • Plenty of nonprofit organizations and local communities offer options to help you recycle old electronics
  • a charity or nonprofit out there that would be happy to take it off your hands.
  • Many electronics manufacturers and retailers offer robust recycling programs
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    3 ways in which you can properly recycle your old electronics. Bring to recycler, donate it, or take it to a tech firm who offers a recycling program.
cpaez007

Recycling Electronic Waste Responsibly: Excuses Dwindle - The New York Times - 0 views

  • Recycling electronics is becoming easier by the day.
  • Still, most old gadgets end up in the trash. Americans alone throw away two million to three million tons of electronics yearly, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. With the life span of devices shrinking — the average phone is replaced every 18 months — the problem keeps growing worse.
  • The solution is not just recycling. It’s to be sure that you’re recycling with a responsible processor.
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  • EStewards and S.E.R.I. use a network of auditors to make sure companies like GreenCitizen are doing what they say they’re doing.
  • Organizations around the world have been certified by S.E.R.I. and eStewards. Both groups let you search their websites for local options. In New York, for example, you can take electronics to GreenChip Electronic Waste Solutions, an R2-certified recycler, or have them picked up by 4th Bin, which is certified by eStewards and also has R2 certification.
  •  
    The issue of illegal electronic dumping has been a real severity, and mostly because people are unaware of what happens to the products that they used to own. Luckily, our world is advancing to a point where appropriate disposal is being greatly developed. There are different mainstream companies that will take your old products to refurbish them, or handle them accordingly. Most importantly, there are companies like GreenCitizen, who are responsibly recycling products. They gather all of the old technology, and attempt to refurbish it. If not possible, then they use the parts, or just dispose of it in the right way. Certified monitors of the recycling process look over the practices of GreenCitizen to make sure that they are doing their jobs correctly. Actions are being dealt more responsibly, as the EPA and these certified monitors have gotten involved. Recycling used to be claimed, but done wrongly. Now, these groups closely overlook the process, and ensure that things are being done appropriately.
peacejj22

Hotel Recycling Programs Make a Major Contribution to our Environment - 0 views

  • Hotel waste management can be an issue, especially when it comes to recycling. How can hotels increase recycling to improve the environment? There are a lot of questions about how hotel recycling programs can help the environment; here are a few.
  • hotels are far more likely to be replacing their equipment and electronics than many other types of businesses.
  • Some hotels managers might assume it’s too difficult to successfully launch and operate an in-house recycling program. They have very large staffs, operate 24 hours a day, and have the challenge of providing immediate and reliable service to their guests.
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  • By recycling their used equipment in bulk, the managers and operators of hotels across the country will help keep those products out of landfills, where the toxins and chemicals inside electronics can pose significant environmental risks to our soil, water, wildlife and even our personal health. The risks are real and well-documented.
  • Waste Management in the Hotel Industry
  • If guests arrive expecting the highest standards, it can make a bad impression to have computers that don’t work or furniture that looks run down.
  • a number of hotels have already proven they can establish successful recycling programs.
  • Cost savings alone should be a top concern for the hotel industry. It’s been estimated that hotel guests generate up to two pounds of waste per night. Because of the prohibitive cost of waste disposal services in New York City, for example, a hotel can spend up to $100,000 annually to get rid of their waste. If recycling can cut that down significantly, that can amount to significant cost savings. And a growing number of hotels are recognizing that they can manage their waste in a sustainable manner, including by recycling.
  • A smart approach would be to offer incentives for workers who provide waste-saving ideas that can be implemented and to educate guests about the hotel’s recycling and environmental policies.
  • The creation of a successful hotel recycling project offers a lot of long-term rewards that include: • cost savings; • strong public relations to their guests; • an engaging program for employees and even guests to become part of.
  •  
    this article goes through the importance of recycling within the Hospitality industry as well as the benefits associated with doing so.
nelson1oliva

Basic Information about Electronics Stewardship | US EPA - 0 views

  • According to a 2013 report by the Consumer Electronics Association, the average American household uses about 28 electronic products such as personal computers, mobile phones, televisions and electronic readers (e-readers). With an ever increasing supply of new electronic gadgets, EPA's Facts and Figures about Materials, Waste and Recycling show that Americans generated 2.7 million tons of consumer electronics goods in 2018, representing less than one percent of all municipal solid waste generation.
  •  
    There is clearly a connection between ownership of "stuff" and proper stewardship of the same. this article brings to light how this process needs to be sustainable and the responsibilities that we all have to ensure that our own footprint is not causing more harm to our planet through poor management of the items we have purchased. According to a 2013 report by the Consumer Electronics Association, the average American household uses about 28 electronic products such as personal computers, mobile phones, televisions and electronic readers (e-readers). With an ever increasing supply of new electronic gadgets, EPA's Facts and Figures about Materials, Waste and Recycling show that Americans generated 2.7 million tons of consumer electronics goods in 2018, representing less than one percent of all municipal solid waste generation.
krikooo94

Cleaning Up Electronic Waste (E-Waste) | US EPA - 0 views

  • EPA works bilaterally with governments and environmental officials around the world on e-waste management.  U.S. EPA and Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration (Taiwan EPA) coordinate the International E-Waste Management Network (IEMN), which has brought together environmental officials from Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and North America to exchange best practices on e-waste management since 2011. 
  • EPA also collaborates with the Solving the E-waste Problem Initiative (Step)Exit Exit EPA website  to jointly address the e-waste problem in developing countries. Step, formerly known as UNU-Step, was previously an initiative under the United Nations University (UNU)
  • “E-waste”, “electronic waste”, “e-scrap” and “end-of-life electronics” are terms often used to describe used electronics that are nearing the end of their useful life, and are discarded, donated or given to a recycler.
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  • An undetermined amount of used electronics is shipped from the United States and other developed countries to developing countries that lack the capacity to reject imports or to handle these materials appropriately. Without proper standards and enforcement, improper practices may result in public health and environmental concerns, even in countries where processing facilities exist.
  • For example, there are problems with open-air burning and acid baths being used to recover valuable materials from electronic components, which expose workers to harmful substances. There are also problems with toxic materials leaching into the environment. These practices can expose workers to high levels of contaminants such as lead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic, which can lead to irreversible health effects, including cancers, miscarriages, neurological damage and diminished IQs.
  • To this end, EPA funded UNU-StEP to lead a study on US exports of used electronics in an attempt to better define the US contribution to the overall e-waste problem.  StEP collaborated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the National Center for Electronics Recycling (NCER)
  • In July 2011, the Task Force released the National Strategy for Electronics Stewardship report, which details the federal government’s plan to enhance the management of electronics by: 1) incentivizing greener design of electronics; 2) leading by example; 3) increasing domestic recycling; and 4) reducing harmful exports of e-waste and building capacity in developing countries.  
  •  
    This article is explaining electronic waste and its danger to developing countries when the materials are not properly disposed of. Many countries have joined forces to create the International E-Waste Management Network (IEMN).
Yueyu Peng

Homeboy Electronics Recycling: Second chance for electronics, ex-cons - 0 views

  • What is that mission? To offer second chances to people, and electronics, that have been discarded by society.
  • Homeboy Electronics Recycling moved into a new 6,000 square foot facility four days after the fire and now employs 18 people who are overcoming life setbacks that include drug addiction, homelessness and incarceration.
  • "People do bad things and we tell them to serve the punishment, but after we never forgive them," Stokes said. "We never let them back into the economy. It's not very fair.”
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  • The idea for a de-manufacturing business was birthed from a chance meeting with an electronics recycler in Indiana who was hiring people fresh from prison. Stokes decided to introduce that concept to Los Angeles. 
  • Her business has since grown from a company that just breaks apart and recycles old computers, phones and radios to one that juggles data destruction from hard drives and full-service repair. People can also, for a small fee, ship their used personal gadgets to the company for safe disposal. 
  •  
    This article is introducing the Homeboy Electronics Recycling. This business is provide the job opportunities for people who overcoming life setbacks that include drug addiction, homelessness and incarceration. And they do the jobs with recycling of electronics.
mtedd003

UN report: Time to seize opportunity, tackle challenge of e-waste | UNEP - UN Environme... - 0 views

  • The world produces as much as 50 million tonnes of electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) a year, weighing more than all of the commercial airliners ever made. Only 20% of this is formally recycled.
  • worth over $62.5 billion
  • Global e-waste production is on track to reach 120 million tonnes per year by 2050 if current trends continue,
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  • $62.5 billion, more than the GDP of most countries.
  • Less than 20% of e-waste is formally recycled, with 80% either ending up in landfill or being informally recycled – much of it by hand in developing countries, exposing workers to hazardous and carcinogenic substances such as mercury, lead and cadmium.
  • improper management of e-waste is resulting in a significant loss of scarce and valuable raw materials, such as gold, platinum, cobalt and rare earth elements.
    • mtedd003
       
      The resources not consumed but still existing in landfills.
  • circular economy in which resources are not extracted, used and discarded, but valued and reused
  • Nigerian Government, the Global Environment Facility and UN Environment announced a $2-million investment to kick off the formal e-waste recycling industry in Nigeria.
  • 100,000 people work in the informal e-waste sector in Nigeria.
  • PACE is a public-private collaboration mechanism and project accelerator dedicated to bringing about the circular economy at speed and scale.
  • The UN E-waste coalition is a group of seven UN agencies who have come together to increase collaboration, build partnerships and more efficiently provide support to Member States to address the e-waste challenge.
  •  
    The Platform for Accelerating the Circular Economy (PACE) is a public-private group consisting of more than 50 heads from various internal and external organizations. The group intends to fight the route cause of e-waste by repairing the method for which technology is recycled. The plan of action is to establish a circular economy. Materials are consumed, trashed, and eventually sent to landfills or sent for workers in toxic unsafe conditions to extract the precious materials. The world produces 50 million tons of e-waste annually, accumulating a worth of almost $62 billion. 80% of e-waste is improperly recycled in dangerous polluted conditions, creating an environmental hazard and unethical work conditions. Valuable resources such as gold, are also lost due to this poor method of recycling.Nigeria is one of the many countries that has exploited thousands of workers in the recycling of e-waste. In an effort to reform this issue, the Nigerian government has invested $15 million to employ PACE's circular economy. The design of a circular economy allows for products to be either made for longer use or recycled in a sustainable way. The circular economy will allow for a more efficient and environmentally friendly method of harvesting these resources while providing sustainable job opportunities.
chadidscha

Electronic Waste Recycling: A Global Problem in Need of Solutions - 0 views

  • Cellphones, computers, and other technological products contain a number of valuable materials that must be mined. Rare earths, gold, palladium, copper, and more all reside within our cell phones, TVs, and more.
  • These valuable materials are acquired through intensive mining operations. The recycling of such materials from our old gadgets would allow us to reuse these valuable materials, ultimately requiring less mining and conserving our finite resources. According to the EPA, the recycling of one million cell phones yields 35,000 lbs. of
  • The toxic components in e-waste not only pose risks to workers in developing nations, but they also pose risks to the environment; where e-waste is either improperly handled or disposed of, there is risk of soil and groundwater contamination.
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  • Many have pinpointed improved legislation, advancement in recycling technologies, increased education, and more convenient recycling programs for resolving the electronic waste crisis. Some companies have already jumped on the bandwagon toward finding improved recycling methods.
  • The Washington-based company behind Redbox and Coinstar has developed a line of ecoATM kiosks, where consumers can conveniently sell their old phones for cash on the spot where they already shop.
  •  
    Electronic waste is a growing problem which affects our soil, groundwater, and more due to improper disposal. This problem was considered a conflicting issue in developing countries in the past; however, that no longer holds truth. Many nations and various companies have become more and more of this issue and try to tackle it by implementing legislations and recycling centers, which allow for proper e-waste disposal. The problem at hand can be dealt with, but a world-wide team effort is needed in order to combat this dilemma.
abalitz

Find Environmentally Friendly Electronics Recycling Centers Locally - 0 views

  •  
    A website designed for the recycling of electronics. This is designed so people can find a place to recycle used electronics more responsibly. This is as simple as putting in your zip code, and locating a electronic recycling area. Some recycling centers well not take all electronics so make sure you know what they take before going. Another way to recycle a larger TV is to buy a new one, and most places will recycle it for you, for free. One thing to remember is that electronics can be recycled, to make many other products. This article states that only 63 percent of people know where they can recycle their used electronics. This shows me there is much room for improvement and make this a greener environment.
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