The Growing Issue with E-Waste

E-waste is something that has become a major problem these days. With millions of tonnes of electronics thrown away each year, electronic waste or e-waste is taking over landfills. Only 10% of e-waste is recycled, which means the rest is dumped somewhere.

Why E-Waste is So Bad

At first glance, e-waste doesn’t seem much worse than other landfill items, but unfortunately, it is. Electronics include everything that uses electricity, including microwaves, televisions, laptops, and phones. Anything that you no longer need or want can end up being thrown out like regular rubbish, except it’s not.

E-waste is packed with nasty chemicals that can cause issues in the environment. Chemicals include:

-      Cadmium

-      Lead

-      Mercury

-      Beryllium

All of these wreak havoc on the environment and they’re not great for people or animals, either. When thrown into a landfill, electronics leach these chemicals into the soil, where it can end up in the groundwater, as well as the air.

How to Handle E-Waste

E-waste should not end up in landfills, which is why there are recycling programs to handle these things. Unfortunately, most people don't know about the programs or are unaware that their old computer is so dangerous.

Companies that eliminate large amounts of computers or other electronics each year are some of the biggest culprits. It’s relatively simple to prevent the chemicals in these electronics from ending up in the environment.

You have multiple options for this:

Recycle: Simply recycling the products means they will be stripped of valuable assets, then processed safely. Not all waste management companies can handle this type of dangerous disposal, so you’ll need to find one that can handle it.

Repair: You may think it’s simpler to toss a broken electronic and buy a new one, but every time you do this, it means more chemicals end up in landfills. You can often repair items such as a phone, laptop, or other item. In some cases, you can even do the repairs yourself at home.

Reuse: Just because you don’t want something anymore doesn’t mean no one else does. Offer your old electronics to others if they want them. You can sell or donate, according to your preference.

Reduce: The simplest method of reducing e-waste is to just not use as many new electronics. Purchase items that will last for a lot longer and pick devices that will manage more than one function. If everyone did this, it would drastically reduce the amount of electronics being thrown into landfills each year.



Everyone needs to take their own steps toward improving the disposal of e-waste. Together, we can make it happen.

If you need a safe place to dispose of your e-waste and recycle it, Broughshire specialises in this. Contact us now to learn more.