Electronic Waste Disposal

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ELECTRONIC WASTE DISPOSAL DEANNA MIRANDA ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES ABSTRACT Humans have had a negative effect on the planet due to numerous actions that have raised serious concerns in protecting our environment. Electronic waste is one of the fastest growing problems in the world. As the human population continues to be more dependent on electronics such as television, computers, cell phones, copiers, refrigerators, and video games, the problem of how to safely dispose of the e-waste must be addressed though out the world. Electronic waste is causing not only environmental damage, but health problems from the illegal e-waste recycling resulting from non-regulation. Developing nations (especially in Asia) have become dumping grounds for this e-waste as Developed nations ship the waste overseas instead of recycling it themselves. The people in the Developing nations have not been instructed on the hazards of handling e-waste while the amount of e-waste is growing by 40 million tons a year. The problems are being discussed globally and some solutions are being implemented. INTRODUCTION Electronic waste disposal is a relatively new environmental problem in the world. With more and more people using electronics such as computers, cell phone, and multi-television homes, the rate of disposal is growing exponentially each year. "Rapid product innovations and replacements – the shift from analog to newer digital technologies and to flat-screen TVs and monitors, for example – is pushing every country to find more effective ways to cope with their e-waste," says Ruediger Kuehr (2009). There are debates going on now about how to safely dispose of the e-waste and where it is going. The United States, China, and India will see sharp rises in the sales of electronics in the next few years (United Nations University, 2010) because of the short lifespan of things like

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