E-waste – Its Effects and Solution

In today’s world, as we are progressing more and more in each and every sector of the economy and with achieving many milestones, we are creating a lot of bad impact on our environment in the form of waste material. This problem of waste generation is becoming dangerous as different types of waste products are being produced, having different adverse effects on the environment and our society. E-waste is one of such type of waste being produced by the modern human.

Electronic waste or E waste may be described as the waste in the form of discarded electronic equipment or devices. These equipment or devices are basically not in the usable form anymore. These usually include old computer keyboards, computer monitors, wires, other computer peripherals, mobile phones, mobile phone chargers, headphones, speakers, Bluetooth devices, multimedia equipment, etc. Electronic waste also includes the old shaving trimmers, hair driers, kitchen appliances, and other small electronic equipment used generally at homes. Thus, all types of small to medium sized electronic devices, which cannot be used further, make a part of E- waste.

There are many causes of the increasing trend of the E- waste generation such as changes in all the electronic technologies, changes in media, planned obsolescence and falling prices. If we look at the facts regarding the generation of E- waste, then it definitely makes it clear how big the problem is. The United States is the number one country in producing the most E-waste, which is more than 3 million tons per year. After that, comes the China, which is producing more than 2.3 million tons of E-waste per year. Only these two countries are producing 10% to 12% of the E-waste being produced around the world.

Effects of E-waste

If the E-waste is not disposed of with the help of formal and proper disposal methods, then it can have a number of bad effects on the society. Some of such are discussed below:

• Improper disposal of the E-waste increases the level of lead in the soil, which makes it contaminated for using it for agricultural or other purposes.
• E-waste, as a result of bad disposal methods, also impacts the water resources of the environment such as ground water or oceans.
• E-waste when burnt releases the toxic chemicals like furans and dioxins into the air, thus affecting its quality and making it inappropriate to inhale etc.

Solution of the problem

E-waste creates bad impact on the environment more when informal disposal methods are followed. But its toxic effects on the environment can be avoided by using the appropriate methods for its disposal. There are some better solutions which can be adopted in order to get rid of E waste such as recycling and incineration of such waste. Nowadays, a lot of new recycling methods and incineration equipment have been introduced in the market. Specialized electronic waste incinerator is being developed for the proper disposal of the E-waste which reduces the toxin creation from their disposal and also reduces its solid mass by more than 95 percent, thus making it easy to manage. Also, you can find incinerators incinerating different wastes such as kitchen waste incinerator, industrial waste incinerator, etc.