Electronic Waste
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, orbrominated 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]
Contents
[hide]
• 1 Definitions
• 2 Problems
• 3 Global trade issues
• 4 E-waste management o 4.1 Recycling o 4.2 Consumer awareness efforts o 4.3 Processing techniques o 4.4 Benefits of recycling
• 5 Electronic waste substances o 5.1 Hazardous o 5.2 Generally non-hazardous
• 6 See also
• 7 References
• 8 Further reading
• 9 External links
[edit]Definitions Hoarding (left), disassembling (center) and collecting (right) electronic waste in Bengaluru, India
"Electronic waste" may be defined as discarded computers, office electronic equipment, entertainment device electronics, mobile phones, television sets andrefrigerators. This definition includes used electronics which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling, or
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, orbrominated 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]
Contents
[hide]
• 1 Definitions
• 2 Problems
• 3 Global trade issues
• 4 E-waste management o 4.1 Recycling o 4.2 Consumer awareness efforts o 4.3 Processing techniques o 4.4 Benefits of recycling
• 5 Electronic waste substances o 5.1 Hazardous o 5.2 Generally non-hazardous
• 6 See also
• 7 References
• 8 Further reading
• 9 External links
[edit]Definitions Hoarding (left), disassembling (center) and collecting (right) electronic waste in Bengaluru, India
"Electronic waste" may be defined as discarded computers, office electronic equipment, entertainment device electronics, mobile phones, television sets andrefrigerators. This definition includes used electronics which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling, or