E Waste Management to protect environment
Technology has improved so rapidly in the past few decades that today it’s hard to imagine what the world would be like without smartphones, GPS maps, laptops and other electronic devices.
At the same time, the skyrocketing amount of used electronics being discarded has left environmental activists and state and local governments asking serious questions about how to reduce e-waste. There are now more mobile phones around the world than the number of people, and there are 7.5 billion people in the world. Reusing the precious metals and plastics in old cell phones instead of mining for brand new materials can save the energy equivalent to power up to 24,000 U.S. homes for a year, according to estimates by the Environmental Protection Agency.
There are actually very simple ways that all of us can help reduce e-waste, which is especially important at a time when our ever-growing reliance on electronics has led to e-waste becoming the largest growing waste stream worldwide.
All it takes is a commitment from you to avoid either throwing away your used electronics or hoarding them in your closet or desk drawer.
And the strategies for reducing e-waste should also include an awareness of your personal security: namely, making sure you delete all personal information from your electronic device so it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.
Electronic waste is defined as discarded electrical or electronic devices that can lead to human and environmental damage if they get put in landfills. These devices contain toxic chemicals like mercury and lead, and while they’re safe to use once they get placed in a landfill those toxins can seep out into the soil and water, contaminating both. If those toxins get into your drinking water, then that presents a health hazard for you and your family.
And this is no minor challenge. As technology evolves and keeps improving our electronics, giving us incentives to get rid of our current models for the newest one, there’s been a tendency to just throw away these products. This has created a serious global e-waste problem.
Reducing e-waste isn’t just about eliminating those environmental risks. Minimizing e-waste also helps us to conserve resources and reduces the amount of energy we need to make these products; recycling parts within e-waste uses considerably less energy than creating new ones.
How you can help in Environmental protection from E waste
- Re-evaluate. Do you really need that extra gadget? Try finding one device with multiple functions.
- Extend the life of your electronics. Buy a case, keep your device clean, and avoid overcharging the battery.
- Buy environmentally friendly electronics.
- Donate used electronics to social programs—and help victims of domestic violence, children safety initiatives, environmental causes, and more.
- Reuse large electronics
- Recycle electronics and batteries in e-waste recycling bins located around campus. Large electronics can go in the larger bins found in your building.
