Delhi has witnessed a wet monsoon this year, however, the morning rain has ceased in the capital. A couple of days back on my way to office I could feel the sun increasingly heating the humid air. Adding to my woes, pillars of black smoke plummeting from a nearby landfill chocked my lungs. The inquisitive person in me followed its source and stumbled upon a muddy track flanked by piles of old and damaged television sets including display units such as CRT, LCD and LED monitors; smashed computer monitors, processors like CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) and APU (Audio Processing Unit) chips and audio components.
Tech waste, e-waste, e-scrap, or waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) are terms quite familiar to us. But how many of us actually understand the repercussions of heaps of discarded electronic and electrical equipment accumulating in a nearby deserted land? Have you ever bothered to spare a moment to fathom the effect of partly recycled high-tech waste by backyard recyclers on the environment?
To satiate the wealthy nation’s appetite for new display technology, out-dated processors become ‘e-waste’ and display units, while still in working condition are most often replaced without attempting to repair them. Instead we should take initiatives to reduce the accumulation of discarded electrical equipment’s and find ways and means to refurbish and utilise them for other purposes. For instance, computer components can be reused in assembling new computer products, or reduced to metals which can be reused in construction purposes or even jewellery making
Informal processing of electronic waste in developing countries can lead to serious health hazards and pollution problems. Electronic scraps containing contaminants such as lead, cadmium, beryllium and other heavy metals leach into the ground water and release toxic phosphor. Responsibly recycling electronic gadgets will not only reduce environmental and human health impacts but also increase the use of reusable and refurbished equipment. Take charge right from today, hunt for the CRT TV stacked in a corner of your store room, wake up the artist in you and turn it into a decorative piece adorning the living room.
photo courtesy- harmonyfdn.ca
