by Alex Francis
Electronics are everywhere. And it’s nothing new—they have been for years. When the world’s population hit 7 billion back in 2011, National Geographic estimated that the billion or so people who make more than $12,195 per year own an average of 106 cell phones per 100 people. Even 22% of the poorest billion people, earning less than $995 in a year, have mobile phones.
Just take a look around and you’ll see the data before your eyes. On any given day you probably use a cell phone, a computer, and a TV, maybe a portable music player and a tablet, too. It’s safe to assume that your friends and coworkers have most, if not all, of those devices as well, and it’s likely that each of those are the second, third, fourth, even fifth of each that you’ve owned.
Electronic Waste in the United States
As explained in an infographic from MetroFax, which can be seen below, the United States alone disposed of over 2.4 million tons of electronic waste in 2010. Of that, 649,000 tons (just under 27%) were recycled while the rest either ended up in a landfill or was incinerated.
That’s just under 5 Empire State Buildings’ worth of waste that was carelessly thrown away rather than recycled—and it isn’t harmless waste, either. It’s no secret that electronic waste contains harmful chemicals like lead, mercury, and lithium, or that those things are leached into the groundwater and the environment when such products are just tossed into landfills.
And incineration isn’t a better alternative. Sure it all turns to ash, but when electronics are burned, they release dangerous toxins into the air. Who wants to go out for a breath of fresh air and have their lungs assaulted with chemicals?
Recycle Your Electronic Waste
While American households are responsible a majority of the new electronic devices purchased every year, the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries reports that only 26% of the electronics being recycled comes from those same household consumers. If everyone were to recycle their electronics properly, there’s no telling how much cleaner our environment could be.
At Cash for Electronic Scrap USA, we will cover all the costs for you to send us your electronic scrap, and we’ll even pay you in return. It really is as simple as filling out a request form, putting your scrap in the mail, and waiting to receive your check. We accept everything from mother boards and hard drives to cell phones and slot processors, so do your part to help the environment and recycle with Cash for Electronic Scrap USA today.
E-Waste Explosion: A Growing Concern was created by MetroFax Blog
