With the rapid developments and innovations in the technology sector over the past few decades, the use of electronic devices has increased significantly, and this has translated to an alarming increase of e-waste. Once disposed to the environment, e-waste has a very harmful effect on water bodies, air, and soil. The toxic substances will harm plants animals and human beings(Kiddee, Naidu & Wong, 2013). Most battery cells, for example, are lead-based. Once they are disposed to the environment, it reacts with water contaminating water. Most electronics have Lead which is very harmful to the environment.

Recycling companies in most cases collect electronic wastes by use of e-waste recycling bins. Some are disposed-off with other waste materials; hence, separated in the sorting process. Once the electronic wastes are collected, they are taken to recycling plants. The elements are first sorted; electronics which need some adjustments and can still be fixed are brought back to electronic companies for refurbishing.

Materials which are beyond repair are shredded and separated. Initial separation is separating plastics from metals and electronics internal circuitry. It’s further shredded to smaller pieces to be separated by use of devices such as a powerful overhead magnet which can separate steel from iron. Other materials like Copper and aluminum are separated from the material stream by mechanical processing(Kiddee, Naidu & Wong, 2013). Other methods such as water separation technology to separate glass from plastics and hand sorting are also used in the process. The separated materials are then prepared for sale as raw materials.

In the process of recycling, there are hazardous materials which can be very harmful to workers and the environment. A good example is a cloud of air-borne dust that is produced in the shredding process. The dust contains hazardous materials such as lead which can be inhaled by employees(Tsydenova & Bengtsson, 2011). Employees are provided with masks and protective clothing that will help them avoid contact with air-borne substances – this is just a small move, but more research is being done to eliminate the problem.

Even after recycling and sorting, some wastes remain from the material stream that needs to be disposed of – this is in most cases is a tiny percentage of initial waste. The main problem is that it may still contain harmful substances that will contaminate the environment(Tsydenova & Bengtsson, 2011). More developed technologies such as route optimization, landfill modernization, and automated waste collection, to mention just a few, have been introduced to ensure that before disposing of the wastes, the last process is ensuring no metals are exposed to the environment anyhow, and the disposed-off material has no harmful substances. Recycling, despite having some hiccups, it has helped reduce the problem of e-waste by a great deal. It has also helped minimize production costs of various organizational commodities as well as agricultural produces as it necessitates that companies reuse/recycle theirinputs and resources in producing new items. Lastly, recycling has created employment to a higher proportion of people within a country.

References

Enforcement, C. (2019). Civil & Criminal Environmental Enforcement. Retrieved from https://www.lawline.com/course/civil-criminal-environmental-enforcement

Kiddee, P., Naidu, R., & Wong, M. (2013). Electronic waste management approaches: An overview. Waste Management, 33(5), 1237-1250. doi: 10.1016/j.wasman.2013.01.006

Tsydenova, O., & Bengtsson, M. (2011). Chemical hazards associated with treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment. Waste Management, 31(1), 45-58. doi: 10.1016/j.wasman.2010.08.014

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