The Often-Overlooked Electronics Problem: Electronic Waste

What can we do about mounting piles of e-waste?

Graph showing the number of people across the world, in billions, using the internet from 2005–2019. Source: International Telecommunication Union (ITU)

Some background:

Electronic waste, or e-waste, is a growing international problem. The problem is very literally mounting: mounds of the stuff — old laptops, fridges, television sets, printers, photocopiers, phones, you name it — is piling and piling up at landfills not only across the UK, but across the world.

The speed of the technology boom over the last twenty to thirty years has been remarkable. This boom has seen personal computers, printers, laptops, mobile phones and smartphones transition from luxury gadgets owned by the privileged few to, at least in the developed world, everyday necessities. This boom has also meant that older models get rapidly replaced as newer, more advanced models are released.

Percentage of households that own home computers in the UK, from 1985–2018. Source: Statista

However, the processes waste management companies use to break down and recycle the rubbish they end up with have not caught up with the speed that Silicon Valley companies, among other international technology giants, have innovated electronics markets. Efficient, safe ways to retrieve the precious metals…