Tag: e-waste
There’s no end in sight to the rise of e-waste
In 2011, the world produced 41.5 million tons of e-waste. While you’re still wrapping your head around that astronomical number, let me drop another one on you. By 2016, it is estimated that the global volume of e-waste will weigh in at more than double that figure. The projection for 2016 is an astounding 93.5 […]
Plugging into the e-waste problem
What do you know about e-waste? The name is kind of misleading. It evokes images of something virtual — maybe something you’d put into the “trash” bin on your computer. In truth e-waste (a.k.a. electronic waste) is very tangible, very real, and a very big problem. E-waste is a blanket term that covers appliances, computers, […]
Why Apple is not so green: The truth behind its recycling program
It’s hard for Apple fans to resist buying the next new iPhone. It’s even harder when the company promises to recycle consumers’ old iPhones and pay them its value so they can buy a brand new iPhone. In August, Apple launched its Reuse and Recycling program, which allows iOS users to bring in their old phones, […]
The trouble with e-waste recycling
Admit it: you have a few old electronics lying around gathering dust. Perhaps it’s an old cell phone (or two, or three). Maybe it’s an outdated or broken video game system. You might have a desktop computer that you haven’t used since 2003. You have the sense that these items shouldn’t simply be dumped in […]
China erects “green fence” to keep dirty recycling out
It’s the dirty little secret of the recycling world: North America is very far from being a zero-waste continent, and the hidden underpinning of the recycling market here is the ability to sell what we can’t recycle to overseas markets, foremost among them China. There, with relaxed or non-existent safety regulations and vastly lower wages, […]
