Title: Electronic Waste (E-Waste) Recycling & Disposal - Facts & Statistics
Headings: Electronic Waste (E-Waste) Recycling and Disposal – Facts, Statistics & Solutions
Electronic Waste (E-Waste) Recycling and Disposal – Facts, Statistics & Solutions
Where Does Our E-Waste Go?
How to Recycle Your E-Waste Safely
Final Word

Content: 20 million TVs are trashed in the U.S. every year. Only 13% of electronic waste is disposed and recycled properly. A recent United Nations report suggests that in some countries, production of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), which includes obsolete mobile phones, computers, and HDTVs, could rise by as much as 500% over the next decade. USA Today projected electronic-waste growth and predicted that by 2014, manufacturers will produce 70 million tons of “e-waste.” Where Does Our E-Waste Go? Electronic waste from equipment of all sizes includes dangerous chemicals like lead, cadmium, beryllium, mercury, and brominated flame retardants. When we dispose of gadgets and devices improperly, these hazardous materials have a high risk of polluting the air, contaminating soil, and leaching into water sources. When e-waste sits in a typical landfill, for example, water flows through the landfill and picks up trace elements from these dangerous minerals. Eventually the contaminated landfill water, called “leachate,” gets through layers of natural and manufactured landfill liner and other protection. When it reaches natural groundwater, it introduces lethal toxicity.