The shame of E-Waste

Despite the pandemic and the social-distancing recommendations, there will be many gift exchanges in the coming days, and electronic devices will be at the forefront.

For the many artisanal miners producing base metals such as gold and 3Ts, for workers in emerging countries in industrial mines, foundries, refineries and factories, and for those who recycle our wastes, it would be disgraceful for us not to reflect on the challenges of this lucrative industry.

Do you know that waste does not exist in natural ecosystems?  Before we ever thought about the concept of circular economy, nature has always worked this way.  Everything is recycled and reused during relatively short or long cycles.

I lived in Accra, Ghana's capital city, in 2012 and 2013 and have visited Agbogloshie's area a few times.  Near a slum called “Old Fadama”, there is a well-known site that is a destination for automobile and electronic scrap collected mostly from developed countries.  The living conditions in the slum are terrible.  The local population, which is very poor and are mainly migrants from the North, live among the waste and recycle it in hazardous and precarious conditions, searching for metal to sell.  The too few children that go to school expose their health during evenings and weekends to earn a few cedis (the local currency).

The level of pollution is extremely high as electronic components, mainly made of plastic containing highly toxic chemicals, are burned to extract metal.  Toxic wastes go to the soil, the water table, and the air, freely exposing every community member to serious health risks.  We have the same situation in Delhi, India, in the Seelampur district which lives off what consumers in the modern world throw in the trash.

A recent UN report reveals that 53.6 million metric tons of e-waste were produced in 2019, the equivalent of 350 cruise ships.  On average, every man, woman, and child on earth throws away 7.3 kg of electronic waste each year.

According to this report, only 17.4% of electronic waste was collected and recycled during this same period, which means that an estimated value of $57 billion worth of gold, silver, copper, platinum, and other high-value and recoverable materials were dumped or burned rather than treated or reused.

The amount of electronic waste has increased by 21% in five years and the report also predicts that global e-waste will reach 74 million tonnes by 2030, almost double that waste in just 16 years.[i]

As you will unpack your presents, think about what can and should be done to correct this nonsense situation.

Happy holidays to all.

[i] The Global E-Waste Monitor 2020

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