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https://www.ifixit.com/News/67115/international-e-waste-day-reminds-us-devices-need-to-last-longer>
"This past week, on October 14th, the world marked International E-waste Day, a
reminder that the materials in the devices we use actually end up somewhere
after we throw them into a bin (or even recycle them). Not only will these
components likely long outlive all of us reading this, but the scale of the
environmental impact e-waste will have on our planet is difficult to even wrap
our minds around.
The vast majority of the top 25 e-waste producers are from Europe or the
Anglosphere—only Japan and Korea are outside it. And while the problem is
global, it does not impact everyone equally: in many developing countries (none
of which are in the top 25 e-waste producers), experts estimate that
approximately 1 percent of the population is involved in informal waste
picking. When that waste picking includes e-waste, workers are exposed to
hazardous metals, leading to health problems including “respiratory infections,
various cancers, congenital disabilities, and other health issues that affect
the brain and other vital organs.” We see colonialism and environmental racism
play out clearly in the health impacts that face workers who earn their living
from extracting and recycling the metals and materials needed for the
production and disposal of electronic devices.
Experts are pointing to repair as a practical and necessary strategy in
addressing the problem."
Via Rixty Dixet.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
