By Michelle Honeyager August 4, 2015
On the surface, it can look like we’re better off these days in terms of the e-waste crisis. Devices are much smaller than they used to be. We’re used to computers sitting in the palm of our hands, rather than occupying an entire desk. Plus, there are e-waste take-back and recycling programs readily available now. But are we really better off in terms of e-waste than we were 20 years ago?E-waste by the numbers
The fact is the size of a device is not as significant as it appears. Our technology may be smaller, but we’re using more of it. A report by the UN found the world produced 41.8 million metric tons of e-waste in 2014. That’s nearly a 24 percent increase since 2010. The UN Environment Program also reported that 90 percent of e-waste is illegally traded or dumped each year.The difference of e-waste amounts between 2000 and 2012 is even more staggering. In 2000, total e-waste for the U.S. amounted to 1,900,000 tons, and in 2012, we generated 3,420,000 tons. However, the electronics recycling rate went from 10 percent to 29.2 percent in that time.
Yet a study from the United Nation University estimates that by 2018 the world’s total e-waste volume is expected to go up to 50 million metric tons.
There’s a problem, and it’s related to our disposable economy.
The lifespan of disposables
It’s commonly known how disposable our tech is. Every year there’s an unwritten rule that we should be shelling out for the latest phone, tablet or other gadget. Cell phone contracts are usually set up for two years and then you can choose to upgrade your phone, usually with some sort of promotion incentive.Popular opinion on the matter is all over the internet with polls on how and when people upgrade their phone. Many people run to the store each year to keep up with yearly upgrades, others wait a whopping three years. Wait four years and your phone isn’t compatible with anything.
But there is an upside. A report out of Recon Analytics said Americans replaced cell phones, on average, about every two years in by 2010 (every 21.7 months). That’s increased from 18.7 months in 2007. The replacement cycle for cell phones was at 26.5 months in 2014 and is expected to climb to around 30 months by 2016.
Tablet computers also sit on the yearly upgrade cycle, much like smart phones. They’re computers that are practically made to seem disposable. Gizmodo ran an editorial that stated while people usually want to replace laptops every three years, that timeframe seems much too long for a tablet.
Meanwhile, PC shipments continue to experience growth, while tablets are not the emerging new supercomputer everyone thought of them a few years ago. While PCs have a longer shelf life, they are still subject to disposability. The state of Texas covers the costs associated with keeping a PC that is four years older or more in one of its IT documents. It states it costs 59 percent more to support an older, outdated PC. And the going advised computer replacement rate in business usually sits at three to four years.
Yet with all the tech we’re tossing, there are some positives. Never before has the mainstream been so focused on tech. With that comes an increased awareness of e-waste.
E-waste awareness
For starters, government initiatives are stronger than ever. The EPA lists it’s e-waste initiatives here, which involve boosting the federal government’s management of electronics through the product lifecycle, working with the United Nations University to address e-waste in developing countries and working with governments and environmental officials to work on e-waste management.Media attention towards lengthened tech lifecycles has also never been stronger. Scientific American covered why we shouldn’t upgrade our phone every year anymore, stating that we shouldn’t fall prey to planned obsolescence and there should be nothing shameful in keeping a gadget until it breaks or doesn’t run the programs you need it to. The New York Times covered how to repair a cell phone so it lasts longer than that two-year average. The article even urges us to trade in a phone when we’re done with it. Yahoo even touted the headline, “Don’t Be That Person Who Buys a New iPhone Every Year.”
The general word in the tech realm, too, is that when cell phones come out, they only have incremental improvements on previous models. Smartphones are no longer making changes each year by leaps and bounds. And it seems the rest of us are wising up to it.
Electronics recycling education programs
Still, we’ll always need to replace our tech. Technology moves forward, that’s just what it does. In that case, recycling is the answer. Since we’re awash with technology, awareness for recycling programs has also never been higher.One such group that focuses on e-waste recycling education is Green Plus. The benefits of the program include, “Participation of the Durham Public Schools and NC Central University School of Business with more universities to follow, professionally developed curriculum teaching hands-on computer repair and refurbishing, e-waste recycling and sustainable/ triple bottom line business practices, high school kids that are matched and connected with mentors in the graduate school of business, refurbished computers provided for those in need and job search training and placement assistance.”
Even Waste Management has an education program for schools craving sustainability, including info about e-waste.
Maybe with greater awareness, we’ll look back at the gaps in our e-waste recycling system as an issue of the past. All electronics will be used as long as they can, and once discarded, will make their way to a recycling facility and will always be properly stored. After all, recycling rates of electronics almost tripled from 2000 to 2012, and the replacement rate of our cell phones keeps getting longer. A 100 percent electronics recycling rate is an ambitious vision, but with our modern society never having been so obsessed with technology, there’s certainly the awareness built in to move us in the right direction.