Protecting the environment has risen in priority across the globe, as researchers have begun to watch the effect of the world’s population on the environment. According to a recent study, the general consensus among 5,000 individuals between the ages of 18 and 25 felt that saving the planet was more important than focusing on economic gain. This is a noble and necessary goal, as the reports on electronic waste (e-waste) are overwhelming. Several years ago, the United Nations reported that there were over 41.8 million metric tons of e-waste were around the world in one year. By the year 2021, it is projected that e-waste will reach 52.2 million metric tons. It now more important than ever that consumers consider the advantages of recycling electronics. For companies like ecoATM, they have made it easy for people to recycle used electronics and feel good about doing so. However, if more people understood the benefits that the simple move to recycle made, there could be a greater impact on the world’s waste accumulation.
1. Reduced Energy Requirements
Mining virgin materials take a considerable amount of energy, thus contributing to both the depletion of natural resources for the purpose of the product as well as the fuel source for sustained production energy and power. Turning to urban mining processes, which reclaims raw materials out of products that have already been used (such as e-waste, buildings, or recycled materials), it can save on both the use of resources and energy. Recycling uses substantially less energy than it does to mine for new commodities, but there is also less energy spent in the process of transporting and manufacturing the virgin materials accumulated.
Two of the most commonly recycled materials are copper and aluminum, which provide substantial savings when you compare the cost of the recycled product to mining for new virgin material. Recycling the aluminum, on average, uses 5% less energy than it does to produce raw aluminum and reduces the release of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere. Even when looking at the cost of copper and gold ore being recovered from e-ware and recycled versus the cost of being mined traditionally, the cost to mine was 13 times more expensive. Even with the ecoATM company offering top recycling incentives for old devices, the cost is nothing compared to the benefits it provides consumes and global citizens.
2. Toxic Waste Removal
According to those who work in the recycling industry, the primary toxins in e-waste come from the leaded glass in cathode ray tv tubes, the heavy metals in circuit boards, batteries, and the mercury in LCD screens. Removing toxins like arsenic, mercury, lead, beryllium, cadmium, and chromium from the waste stream is very important. Mercury, a component of compact fluorescent lighting, is a neurotoxin. Rather than taking electronics to the landfill where the toxins are able to seep and leach into the groundwater, certified recyclers are able to keep the environment free from the dangers of chemical exposure. In some third world countries, the recycling process has the hazardous compounds being removed from the electronics and incinerated over a flame. This is equally dangerous, as it allows the toxins to enter the air and any surrounding water bodies. Increased global regulation over recycling processes is another area of interest for researchers studying the effects of e-waste.
3. Resource Recovery
Being able to recover valuable resources is another benefit of e-waste recycling. Mining one gram of gold requires a ton or more of ore to be moved, but the same amount can be recovered in 41 mobile phones. Rather than mining for rare earth metals, recycling electronics that rely on them can help with more than just the financial cost of production. It can help resolve geopolitical issues that deal with ownership of the resource as well as rare earth trade disputes.
