Why is Electronic Waste A Big Problem?

It is easy to simply suggest that people recycle the common wastes their households in Vancouver produce. It’s easy to ask people to recycle their computer or recycle their TV, Vancouver city government even supports it.

However, even with the steadfast support from numerous non- government organizations and Vancouver government alike, the growing number of electronic waste produced every year seems to be an unstoppable problem.

Why?

Here’s the thing: If you want to recycle a TV, Vancouver city government has designated recycling depots where you can give your old TV or other electronic appliances. There is also electronic drop off events being held from time to time to give locals the opportunity to hand over their old electronics. Some businesses in the electronic industry even have to take back programs wherein you can give your end of life electronic back to the manufacturer so they can take care of the recycling for you.

But, even with the support from different groups, thousands of new electronics are being introduced each year – and naturally, millions of these electronics are being purchased by people all throughout the world. So, what happens to their old electronics that need to be replaced by these new ones? If they’re not re-sold, or donated – you guessed it right, they are simply thrown away. This cycle just goes on and on since the advancements in the world of electronics are inevitable.

In addition to this unavoidable problem is the fact that the number of organizations that recycle electronics we have today is just not enough.

In order to cope with the vast number of e-waste, some countries ship the electronic wastes to other countries where these wastes are burned. Burning electronics can be highly dangerous, not only for humans but for the environment as well. However, some choose to have the electronic waste transferred for burning rather than have these thrown in landfills.

The production of new electronics is never-ending, and the presence of recycling programs and businesses is not enough to resolve the e-waste issue we have.

At the end of the day, each of us should make some sacrifices to be able to fix the problem. We can avoid purchasing electronic items we don’t need, we can have our broken electronics repaired so we can reuse them rather than throwing them away, and we can give our old gadgets to friends and relatives instead.

There are numerous ways we can help in alleviating the growing problem we have on electronic waste.