Think twice before throwing old electronic devices into the trash can. You may not know it, but consumer electronics are full of dangerous heavy metals that do not need to end in landfills. In landfills, these heavy metals can seep into the soil and eventually enter our water supply system. From there it will enter our drinking water and cause health problems. As the pace of technological innovation continues to accelerate, this issue is receiving increasing attention. As technology advances to make better electronics available faster, people are now getting rid of their electronic devices faster than ever before. It is currently estimated that 70% of the dangerous heavy metals in landfills come from consumer electronics, even though they account for only 2-3% of our total waste, and these numbers are expected to continue to increase.
Heavy metals are not the only environmental problem because a large amount of consumer electronics is stacked in landfills. Most consumer electronics also contain large amounts of plastic, and because these plastic casings may be exposed to high temperatures, they typically have flame retardant additives. This is a chemical that is mixed into the plastic resin during production to increase the melting point and ignition point of the plastic. The nature of this additive makes it easy to leach in hot weather, as we have experienced in Texas and the South. This chemical is then immersed in the soil and eventually enters our water system.
The problem is beyond our local landfill in the United States. The same heavy metals that make consumer electronics in landfills harmful are valuable to countries that need raw materials such as China and India. The problem is that when e-waste is shipped to these areas, it is transported in bulk. Not all shipped electronic products can be physically recycled at the factory they sent overseas. This has led to the establishment of toxic electronic waste dumps in rural areas of countries such as China and India near these facilities. In addition, these countries do not have environmental regulations or inspections to do anything with these toxic e-waste sites, which pose a serious threat to local communities in these areas.
In Texas, the problem is serious enough to prompt the state government to respond. The Austin, Texas, legislature recently passed a measure requiring computer makers to sell products in Texas to provide free recycling for old and bad computers. This will help reduce the amount of e-waste in Texas. Landfill is by no means an appropriate solution to the problem. The law does not address the growing problem of landfill television because it does not require TV manufacturers to provide free recycling of television. It is expected that with the recent shift to digital TV, there will be a large number of old, non-digital compatible TVs that are undergoing treatment. Without simple recycling, many of these TVs will eventually enter the landfill, contaminating soil and groundwater. Further government action is needed to prevent this problem from getting worse.
So next time you have an electronic device to get rid of, whether it's a laptop or a mobile phone, think twice before putting it in the trash. Instead, bring them all to your local goodwill, where they can be tested and resold, repaired or recycled according to their conditions. This is a great way to help the community and prevent the supply of nasty chemicals. In Austin, you can also park your free electronic equipment at the Ecology Action Recycling Center in the city centre or at the Urban Landfill Recycling Center in South Austin. Most cities offer such facilities to help limit the amount of e-waste entering the landfill, so extra effort is needed to find the location of the nearest recycling facility and bring the old electronic equipment there instead of Send to landfill.
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