E-WASTE SNC 1D

ELECTRIC AVENUE  We all love our electronics and we want to keep up with the latest and greatest tech toys. But, what are the environmental consequences of our love affair with electronics?

ELECTRONICS AND YOU  What is an “electronicdevice?”  How often do we change electronic devices?  How does changing these devices so often impact the environment?  What is the impact of all these devices on our use of electricity?  What is the impact does this have on our need to produce electricity?

ELECTRONICS AND YOU  The number of electronic devices we use is rising every year.  At the same time, we change these devices more frequently, so the life span for each device is getting shorter.  With so many devices in our life, electronics are the fastest growing source of waste that often ends up in the garbage and is sent to municipal dumpsites.  The large number of electronics in our homes is also now the greatest single user of electricity.

DEVICES  An in-use device is an electronic device that is still useful.  When it is not longer useful, it is called an out-of-use device.

Check this out!  The photograph depicts 426,000 cell phones, the number of phones that were discarded every day in the US in  Estimate how many that would be today.  Estimate how many could be discarded daily in Canada today.

ELECTRONICS INVESTIGATION TALLY Class TotalAve per studentTotal for all Ontario Gr 9’s (x ) In use Out of use

WHOSE RESPONSIBILITY IS IT, ANYWAY?  What should we do with unwanted electronics?

1. TECHNOLOGY IS EVOLVING AT A RAPID RATE  We’re constantly creating new technologies.  More than 500,000 tablets were shipped in Canada in That number was expected to grow in triple digits by the end of the following year.  And while we do, the design of our technology continues to evolve by becoming smaller and smarter  By 2015, nanotechnology will impact over $2.5 trillion worth of manufactured goods.  Both of these factors influence how often upgrade our electronic devices

2. ONTARIANS ARE CONSUMING MORE ELECTRONIC DEVICES EVERY DAY  We used to think about the number of electronics we have in terms of households.  In 2010, 80% of Ontario households had at least one out-of-use device.  Now we think about these numbers in terms of individuals.  In 2011, 90% of Ontarian individuals indicated they had at least one out-of-use device  This is a significant shift in how much Ontarians invest in technology.  Ontarians own 38% of devices in Canada or 12,035,696 devices  81% of Ontario’s population has a mobile phone  Ontarians own 42% of mobile phones in Canada or 10,832,130 mobile phones

3. ONTARIANS ARE HOLDING ONTO E- WASTE  90% of Ontarians have unwanted electronic devices to dispose of. Why?  35% haven’t gotten around to it  20% hope to pass it along  19% don’t know what to do with it  6% perceive financial value  6% say it has sentimental value  Average person keeps their mobile device for 2 years and 7 months

4. REPORTED BARRIERS TO WASTE DISPOSAL ARE:  41% stated lack of information on where proper disposal is available  32% stated inconvenience  29% stated lack of drop off areas  22% stated no incentive to do so  17% stated they didn’t want to pay a disposal fee

5. WHAT YOU RECOVER FROM RECYCLING  Within the last 3 years 100,000 tonnes of e-waste has been recycled. That’s more than 16lb of e-waste per person!  So what does 100,00 tonnes look like?  6,500,000 laptops, or  1,000,000 monitors, or  1,000,000 desktop towers, or  1,000,000 CRT TVs, or  100,000 LCD TVs

WHAT ARE WE SAVING?  To produce one tonne of copper:  It takes only 14 tonnes of recycled e-waste, compared to 80,000 tonnes of raw material acquired from underground mining.  1 tonne of copper is enough to make 5,000 new mobile phones  Recycling 1 million mobile phones would reduce greenhouse gas emissions equal to taking 1,368 cars off the road for a year?

RECYCLING E-WASTE  In just three years, Ontarians have diverted over 100,000 tonnes of old electronics from landfills.  This is essential; e-waste is not garbage.  It contains valuable materials like base and precious metals, along with plastics and glass that can be safely recycled to manufacture new products.  Recycling electronics keep substances like lead, cadmium, beryllium, mercury, and brominated flame-retardants—out of landfills.

HOW ARE ELECTRONICS RECYCLED AROUND THE WORLD?