• Waste

    • We are producing enormous amounts of waste - much of it is toxic. Radical changes are needed or the problem will spin completely out of control.

    • Waste

  • Electronic waste

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  • tons thrown out
  • globally, this year

    • A growing problem

    E-waste is the most rapidly growing waste problem in the world. We generate about 40 million tons of e-waste every year. This is equivalent to throwing out 800 laptops every single second. In some places the amount of e-waste increases with 500% in the years to come…

    Where does it go?

    A lot of e-waste is shipped to Asia or Africa for “recycling”. This may sound good, but in fact it’s just an easy and cheap way to get rid of the enormous amounts of e-waste we generate. A lot of it is simply burned.

    It’s extremely polluting

    The soil of the Chinese e-waste site “Guiyu” record some of the world’s highest concentrations of dioxins and heavy metals. Water contained lead 2,400 times higher than safe levels. Many children work here.

    A vicious circle

    Villagers cannot grow their own food because the soils are heavily polluted. To survive, they must work in the recycling industry further degrading their health and surrounding environment.

    The health effects

    Birth defects, damage to central and peripheral nervous systems; distorted blood composition; damaged lungs, livers, and kidneys; and death. Children working in the recycling yards are at much higher risk for damaging their health than adults. You can check out this Greenpeace video on e-waste.

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