Electronic Waste (E-Waste) Background & Information
This document is intended to be a source of basic information about electronic waste and why it is an important issue which merits our time and attention.
The Student Engineering Council (SEC) is currently planning an Austin-wide e-waste drive to be held in March 2009. We are seeking individuals interested in being part of the committee to plan this important event. If you are interested in being part of this groundbreaking committee, please email us as soon as possible at service.sec.ut@gmail.com.
If you are interested in donating used electronics or volunteering for the event come March, please keep an eye out for further emails and announcements.
Why Electronics Recycling is Important
- CNN
- Video news clip about e-waste recycling
- http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/tech/2008/12/27/wolf.ewaste.recycling.cnn
- CBS, 60 Minutes - Following The Trail of Toxic E-Waste - http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/11/06/60minutes/main4579229_page2.shtml
- DoSomething.org
- "Electronic waste, or e-waste, is electronics equipment that isn't properly recycled. Computers, cameras and cell phones are filled with highly toxic materials, like lead, mercury, cadmium and brominated flame retardants. To make matters worse, much of our e-waste is recycled (often illegally) overseas using sub-standard methods that do more harm than good." http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/background-e-waste
- http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-e-waste
- Goodwill ComputerWorks in Austin (our partner in recycling)
- Video news clips about Goodwill's operation & previous drives
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- eCycling Home - http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/ecycling/index.htm
- Fact Sheet: Management of Electronic Waste in the United States - includes facts, figures, and numbers - http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/ecycling/docs/fact7-08.pdf
"Of the 2.25 million tons of TVs, cell phones and computer products ready for end-of-life (EOL) management, 18% (414,000 tons) was collected for recycling and 82% (1.84 million tons) was disposed of, primarily in landfills." http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/ecycling/manage.htm
Additional Links & Information
- www.electronicsrecycling.org
- www.mygreenelectronics.org
- Exploring e-waste management systems in the United States
Resources, Conservation and Recycling, Volume 52, Issue 7, May 2008, Pages 955-964
Ramzy Kahhat, Junbeum Kim, Ming Xu, Braden Allenby, Eric Williams, Peng Zhang