Background Information

Zhang (2011) claims that “Five hundred million personal computers contain approximately 2,872,0001t of plastics, 718,000 t of lead, 1363 t of cadmium and 287 t of mercury”. This only accounts for one type of electronic component, and according to Prasad and Vithanage (2019), “in 2016, the gold in the world’s e-waste equated to 1/10th of the gold mined globally that year”. Therefore, despite all of this e-waste being obsolete, it still contains extremely valuable resources, which could greatly help the world’s economies and boost the amount of resources we have available, meaning mining, deforesting, and other harmful activities could be greatly reduced.

References

• Fowler, B, 2017, Electronic Waste : Toxicology and Public Health Issues, Elsevier Science & Technology, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uow/detail.action?docID=4843141, Accessed 7^th May 2021.
• Zhang, K, 2011, Recycling of Electronic Waste II : Proceedings of the Second Symposium, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uow/detail.action?docID=699415, Accessed 7^th May 2021.
• Prasad, A & Vithanage, M, 2019, Electronic Waste Management and Treatment Technology, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uow/detail.action?docID=572304, Accessed 7^th May 2021.
• Prasad, M, Vithanage, M & Borthakur, A, 2019, Handbook of Electronic Waste Management : International Best Practices and Case Studies, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uow/detail.action?docID=5984876, Accessed 7^th May 2021.