Electronic Waste: Time to Wake Up

Abstract

The volume of electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) being generated in the world due to exponential growth in electrical and electronic appliances and equipment, production and consumption worldwide, is reaching to unmanageable limits. The latest estimates indicate that in 2020 almost 90 – 100 million tons of e-waste will be generated globally. E-waste is today the fastest growing waste stream (about 8% a year). However, increasing quantities of e-waste and its mismanagement represents a major concern across the world due to the presence of hazardous substances such as lead, mercury, PCB, asbestos and CFC’s. Uncontrolled dumping in the third world countries and inappropriate recycling processes generate negative impacts on the environment and pose risks to human health. On the other hand, e-waste contains valuable materials such as gold, silver, copper, platinum, palladium, iron, aluminium, indium, gallium and rare earth metals that may be recovered thus contributing to sustainable resource management.