What Can We Do About the Growing E-waste Problem? - 0 views
news.climate.columbia.edu/...growing-e-waste-problem
technology Hospitality e-waste circular-economy

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Why the upsurge in e-waste? Technology is becoming more and more integrated into every aspect of our lives.
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Companies intentionally plan the obsolescence of their goods by updating the design or software and discontinuing support for older models, so that now it is usually cheaper and easier to buy a new product than to repair an old one.
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The U.S., the second largest producer of e-waste after China, produced 10 million tons of e-waste in 2012
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only 29 percent of this was recycled—the rest is usually landfilled, incinerated or stuck in a closet.
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40 percent of the e-waste supposedly recycled in the U.S. was actually exported. Most of it ended up in developing countries—usually in Asia
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A circular economy is one that aims to keep products and all their materials in circulation at their highest value at all times or for as long as possible.
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imagine a system where the provider or manufacturer retained ownership of the device through the contract so customers would pay a lower monthly fee and be expected to return the device for an upgrade. The value could be recaptured in the form of parts for remanufacture or materials for recycling, and customers would still get their upgrades.”
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E-waste (electronic waste) has continually risen due to technology being part of our everyday lives. Upgrades for technology happen e very year and so the life span of devices becomes shorter due to new technology being available. Only 29% of e-waste is recycled in the U.S. There has to be better solutions to combat e-waste. The concept of circular economy can help with the e-waste problem.