Extracting toner in Giuyu.
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CREDIT: BASEL ACTION NETWORK
Delegates from 120 governments met in Nairobi, Kenya, this week to discuss what to do about e-waste, particularly the oceans of electronic junk that arrive daily in poorer countries of Asia and Africa.
According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), about 50 million tons of e-waste is generated annually--with the United States being by far the largest producer. The Basel Convention, adopted in recent years by most European countries, calls for a ban on the export of all hazardous wastes--which includes electronics because of their toxic components--from rich to poor countries.
But as richer countries try to discourage throwing e-waste in landfills, the "recycling" business has grown apace. About 80% of the world's high-tech rubbish ends up in Asia--90% of that in China, and most of that in Giuyu, north of Hong Kong. After workers extract a few desirable parts, most is left to pollute the environment.
Even goodwill gestures are ending up as junk, according to UNEP Director Achim Steiner. More than half of the computers donated to Africa are obsolete or unusable because of lack of technical support.
There's been some progress at addressing e-waste, however. Last month, for example, three Asian countries signed on to a pilot scheme for the collection and environmentally sound disposal of "end-of-life" mobile phones.
