That old cell phone of yours is not going to decompose in your
desk drawer, closet or (enter where you’ve hidden it here).
Neither is that TV that’s magically no longer your problem
once you set it outside your apartment.
Technology gives us a lot of new toys, and it quickly upgrades
to better models. But when technology becomes obsolete, the trash
should not be where it’s at. This needs to become as
important to us as buying that more stylish iPod, that faster
laptop or that new cell phone that does everything but save a cat
from a burning tree.
According to the International Association of Electronics
Recyclers, 400 million units of consumer electronics will find a
landfill each year. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
estimates that between 2000 and 2007, around 500 million computers
will become obsolete. Right now, 500 million cell phones that have
become trash worthy are in the hands of Americans, and 130 million
more are added each year. In 2000, only 9 percent of all obsolete
electronics were recycled.
Head swimming yet? The numbers are really not that surprising,
considering that by the time you finish reading this article, your
cool new gadget has likely become boring.
And trashing it is easy ““ usually it’s small enough
to fit in your kitchen trash ““ but what’s easy is often
not what’s right. Just as electronics don’t belong in
the compost heap on your balcony, they also don’t belong in
landfills where they will leak radiation, lead and other
poisons.
That’s where the two types of recycling of
“e-waste,” or electronics waste, step in. Usually,
e-waste recycling is more like re-using than recycling. In these
cases, an organization takes the unwanted technology and
refurbishes it. The electronics are then donated to programs
helping individuals ““ or in the case of computers, sometimes
schools ““ that cannot afford new technologies.
The second type of e-waste recycling is more akin to what the
word recycling traditionally brings to mind. Technologies are taken
apart, and parts that can be recycled ““ like glass and metal
““ are recycled or smelted. Elements that are harmful to
people and the environment are properly disposed of, rather than
left to leak into the ground or water.
It takes a lot of effort on the part of these programs, and it
varies in how cost effective it is in the short term. However, in
the long term, it’s the least we can do for ourselves. The
EPA even sees potential for a growing job market in e-waste
recycling.
We as students have a responsibility to our future and the
environment. For individuals, electronics recycling is quite
simple, though most students I interviewed were unaware of it.
The EPA lists many of these recycling organizations, or you can
simply google the words “(technology of your choice)
recycling.” There are often recycling centers nearby that
collect e-waste.
Some electronics stores, such as Best Buy and Staples have been
known to collect unused electronics. Most Cingular Wireless stores
are happy to receive old cell phones, and you can mail your old
phones to Verizon Wireless’ program “Hopeline
Recycling.” Some programs even inform you of how your
shipping costs are tax deductible, or offer free shipping
period.
For those who are more excited about e-waste recycling, you can
start a collection drive for cell phones. Then, you simply ship
them to one of the many organizations that collect them, such as
Pledge-A-Phone. Like many other programs, it refurbishes and
redistributes the phones to battered women’s homes for
emergency contacts, and furthermore pledges money to the charity
organization of your choice.
I am proud to say that UCLA’s facilities management
recycles its e-waste. Furthermore, we have an e-waste “UCLA
SAFE Collection Center” on Charles E. Young Drive.
So the problem for once seems not to be accessibility. Instead,
it’s a lack of knowledge, which I hope I have changed
slightly.
The only problem left is that people seem to be growing
emotional attachments to their old technologies. I have to admit, I
myself once hugged my old computer while coaxing it to work ““
and then I kicked it for ignoring me.
Afterward, it sat in my garage, attempting to be what it’s
not: biodegradable. Finally, I realized it was time for it to go.
Now it’s either helping someone more needy than me, or safely
resting in pieces. And that’s just as magical as a TV
disappearing off your front lawn.
Hashem is glad that at least she’s still
biodegradable. E-mail her at nhashem@media.ucla.edu.