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Electronic waste, also known as e-waste, is a blanket term for any electronic device that is now outdated, broken, or obsolete and is therefore discarded since there is no use for them. E-waste includes small objects such as cellphones to larger home electronics such as washing machines and dryers. Some of the most common types of e-waste that is being seen right now are types of technologies that are quickly being outdated. These include televisions, printers, fax machines, scanners, laptops, monitors, and more. Below are some tips for recycling e-waste.
E-waste is quickly becoming a growing problem because technologies are rapidly changing. A piece of technology that was relevant only two years ago is no longer suitable today. This leads to more and more e-waste being thrown out where it ends up in landfills. The United States is responsible for producing 50 million tons of e-waste per year. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of this e-waste is recycled. Nearly 75% of the e-waste ends up in landfills.
These products should be recycled instead of being thrown out. This is because technologies that are thrown away contain hazardous materials. When tons of e-waste are being thrown out, this can lead to a lot of dangerous materials contaminating water supplies and the air. There are also trace amounts of precious metals in pieces of technology such as gold. When you recycle these items, these precious metals can be harvested so they can be used for future products. This means that less mining will have to be done and lessens the strain on these finite resources. If you have e-waste lying around in your house, you are encouraged to recycle these items instead of throwing them away. While there are specific rules for recycling e-waste, it can be made much easier when you contact WC Recycler to receive a data destruction quote.
