$320m lost though bad e-waste management
Over 80,000 tonnes of electronic waste is being dumped into landfills each year.
The disposal of e-waste has become an increasing concern in New Zealand after a recent report estimated that over 80,000 tonnes of electronic waste is being dumped into landfills each year.
According to the eDay New Zealand Trust, electronic waste is disposed of in massive amounts each year, consisting of a range of electronic components such as desktop computers and expired cellphones.
A review into the numbers that make up the 80,000 tonnes of annual e-waste shows the full extent of the value behind proper disposal.
According to prices provided by Christchurch’s E-Scrap Recycling organisation, the only known organisation in the country so far that offers payments for scrap electronics, a single ton of e-waste is valued at an average of $4,000, producing an average of $320 million of e-waste per year.
One of the reasons businesses and consumers may not engage in responsible disposal of e-waste may be due to the lack of information circulating the proper methods of discarding unwanted electronics, according to Brad Rope, general manager of New Zealand owned e-waste recycling company Recytech.
“E-waste contains some harmful materials that must be safely and expertly managed – it cannot be easily disposed of at landfills. The best way to ensure the safe and environmentally responsible disposal of e-waste is to choose a specialist disposal company that is certified under the international Basel Convention,” says Mr Rope.
Mr Rope encourages New Zealand businesses to hunt for information on e-waste disposal companies and to make sure that they are Basel Certified before the disposal process begins, after estimates show that around 7.8 million desktop computers in operation in New Zealand today.
Although the disposal of e-waste through careless landfill dumping may seem like the easiest and least engaging method, proper disposal of electronics through various organisations will result in more benefits for both the environment and business related finances.
Robert McCambridge
Thu, 29 Sep 2011
Thu, 29 Sep 2011
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