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Electronic equipment is made of many substances, including rubber, metals, glass and plastics. Metals in general are non-renewable. In general, plastics are non-renewable as they are derived from oil. Glass is renewable resource, but we are consuming fossil fuels to transform silicon particles (sand) into glass. For this reason, glass should be recycled. More importantly, there has been a huge turnover of electronic equipment, creating hazardous conditions when disposed in incinerators or landfills. The disassembly of electronic equipment and re-use is a growing and important industry. There is a worldwide effort to recycle or carefully dispose of the plastics used in all electronic equipment (from telephones, televisions, cameras, computers, fax machines, ipods, and many others) as there are chemical hazards (heavy metals in particular) to the environment when large quantities enter landfills. You can find out if there are special measures being taken in your community for recycling computer equipment. All the major manufacturers of PC's are aware of "e-waste." I've included some links.
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Lead
A significant pollutant associated with high-tech gadgets and landfills is e-waste, which includes hazardous materials such as lead, mercury, and cadmium. When electronic devices are improperly disposed of in landfills, these toxic substances can leach into the soil and groundwater, posing risks to human health and the environment. Additionally, the accumulation of e-waste contributes to pollution and resource depletion as valuable materials are lost and not recycled. Proper recycling and disposal methods are essential to mitigate these environmental impacts.
Approximately 11.5 million tons of glass are discarded in American landfills each year. This accounts for about 4-5% of the total waste in landfills. Despite being recyclable, a significant portion of glass ends up in landfills due to contamination, lack of recycling facilities, and consumer habits. Efforts to improve recycling rates could help reduce this figure.
Electronic waste From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For the EC directive, see Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive. Defective and obsolete electronic equipment. Electronic waste, e-waste, e-scrap, or waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) describes discarded electrical or electronic devices. There is a lack of consensus as to whether the term should apply to resale, reuse, and refurbishing industries, or only to product that cannot be used for its intended purpose. Informal processing of electronic waste in developing countries may cause serious health and pollution problems, though these countries are also most likely to reuse and repair electronics. Some electronic scrap components, such as CRTs, may contain contaminants such as lead, cadmium, beryllium, or brominated flame retardants. Even in developed countries recycling and disposal of e-waste may involve significant risk to workers and communities and great care must be taken to avoid unsafe exposure in recycling operations and leaching of material such as heavy metals from landfills and incinerator ashes. Scrap industry and USA EPA officials agree that materials should be managed with caution.[citation needed] ;lh
Lead is a common pollutant associated with high tech gadgets in landfills. It is found in components like circuit boards and batteries, and can leach into the soil and water, posing environmental and health risks.
Some problems associated with modern landfills include leachate contamination of groundwater, methane gas emissions contributing to climate change, and limited space availability leading to increased pressure on surrounding communities for waste disposal solutions.
According to the EPA, electronic waste contributes 70% of the toxic heavy metals found in landfills.
It varies depending on the size and operation of the landfill. Larger landfills could employ hundreds of workers, while smaller ones might have only a handful of employees. Typically, landfills require workers for roles such as site management, equipment operation, maintenance, and administration.
If you think that this will release hazardous waste in landfills, call you town hall, or wait for a hazardous waste day.