The Facts about E-Waste
What is E-Waste
It's easy. Electronic waste, or E-Waste is pretty simple. This is a the term for electronics that are no longer used due to age, or damage. The problem this causes is that electronics are made with a lot of toxins and improper disposal of E-Waste can release these toxins into the environment .
Why Recycle Electronics
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According to the E.P.A "Electronic products are made from valuable resources and materials, including metals, plastics, and glass, all of which require energy to mine and manufacture. Donating or recycling consumer electronics conserves our natural resources and avoids air and water pollution, as well as greenhouse gas emissions that are caused by manufacturing virgin materials.
For example:
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Recycling one million laptops saves the energy equivalent to the electricity used by more than 3,500 US homes in a year.
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For every million cell phones we recycle, 35 thousand pounds of copper, 772 pounds of silver, 75 pounds of gold and 33 pounds of palladium can be recovered."
Ethical disposal of Electronics
We firmly believe in the ethical disposal of electronics and for that reason we will never ship anything overseas. Unlike most recycling centers we don’t export anything. You may think that exporting electronics is not a big deal but it's causing a huge problem as shown in this report by CNN.
Facts From The E.P.A
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The United States produces more e-waste annually than any other country. The amount of electronics that Americans throw away every year? 9.4 million tons.
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Recycling one million laptops saves the energy equivalent to the electricity used by 3,657 U.S. homes in a year, according to the EPA.
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For every one million cell phones that are recycled, the EPA states that 35,274 pounds of copper, 772 pounds of silver, 75 pounds of gold and 33 pounds of palladium can be recovered. For those not familiar with palladium, it’s a precious metal using for making electrical contacts, as well as surgical instruments and parts for watches.
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Only 12.5 percent of e-waste is recycled, according to the EPA.