Recycling Computers

810 Words2 Pages

Hi Tech Waste

When discussing the issue of recycling it is always important to talk about the effect this has on the environment. When recycling computers it is also very important to recognize the amount of hazardous material in an actual computer. Not until the last few decades has this been an issue. Many people and many companies are upgrading their computers and the issue here is what to do with the old ones. Computers are put together very complexly. There are many materials that are needed to make a computer work and many of these are deemed hazardous to the environment. Lead, cadmium, and mercury are some of the materials that are found in computers and other electronic devices, and these substances are being added to landfills at an alarming rate.

The National Safety Council estimates that 300 million computers will be discarded by the year 2007. The recycling company BTTF estimates that 63 million computers will become obsolete in the year 2005. BTTF also estimates that ink cartridges for computers are being discarded at a rate of nearly eight per second. Another recycling company estimates that about 1 billion floppy disks, CD’s, and DVD’s are discarded of and eventually end up in landfills (Parsons, 104). This is important information because many people do not realize how harmful computer waste can be to the environment. With all these “old” parts of computers being thrown away at such a rapid rate it is critical to weigh your options for disposal because if everyone simply threw their old computers in the Wednesday trash we would have a problem in the very near future.

Most people don’t know that there are agencies and programs set up solely to discard of hazardous electronics. Therefore, most p...

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...e initiated the same sort of programs (Bartholomew).

The recycling of computers and other electronic devices is essential to the upkeep of our environment. With all the new computers and new versions of software that are coming out these days there are “old” ones as well that must be discarded of. It is important that the facts about this kind of electronic waste are presented to the public, and it is also important that consumers are presented with different options for disposal. As long as people start to realize how serious this issue is then there shouldn’t be any real problems in the near future.

Works Cited

1) www.Nepsi.com. April 2003. Journal of Environmental Health.

2) www.epa.gov. November 29, 2001. Recycling Computers Soon To Be Norm. David Roberts.

3) Computer Concepts. Thompson Learning Inc. 7th edition, 2004.

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