Wynter Santos: Extend the life of appliances to avoid electronic waste

To The Daily Sun,

Sixty-one million tons of e-waste are added to our landfills every year.

E-waste is short for electronic waste, a growing issue in our modern world. Its effects fuels climate change, and has negative consequences for us as well. Our country has the second highest rates of e-waste in the world. This waste includes phones, refrigerators, computers, and many other appliances we use everyday that are designed to make our lives easier.

But do they? Or do they sometimes complicate our lives further?

The health effects of e-waste have proven to be vastly negative. For children who live or go to school near landfills where it resides, the high levels of toxic chemicals released from the waste can damage their developing intellectual abilities. Since their organs are less developed than those of adults, they absorb more of the chemicals and have a harder time getting rid of toxic substances that reside in their bodies. This form of waste also has a significant impact on pregnant women, and can cause stillbirth and premature births.

According to a sustainability article by Harvard, when it comes to what people can do about e-waste individually, there are several different courses of actions people can take. For example, it is wise to re-evaluate, and ask ourselves if we really need the newest iPhone, or a new kitchen appliance when we already have perfectly functioning ones. Instead of continuing to buy increasingly new electronics, the best course of action is to instead take care of the technology we already have in our possession by avoiding overcharging, which wears the battery, and buy cases for our materials to extend the life of our old electronics. Thrift stores can also be utilized for gathering used but still useful electronics. It’s best to encourage that we use what is already available to us before buying completely new objects.

When it comes to e-waste, our goal should be to keep our discarded devices out of landfills. The best method for us to do this is by taking valuable parts of these materials and sending them back to the manufacturers. As the Great Lakes Electronic Corporation says, “It’s ironic, in some ways, that these devices are called ‘e-waste,’ since they’re not waste at all. But in far too many instances, they are thrown away.” At the end of the day, these parts will help fuel the continuous production of electronics, instead of wasting them, making new ones, and allowing the pollution that e-waste produces to continue, and putting our health at risk.

Most importantly, we should donate our used electronics to e-waste recycling programs. Let’s encourage our cities and towns to implement recycling centers and support recycling legislation. The number of electronics that get recycled is still very low, as well as awareness. Most people want to do the right thing, but many aren't aware of e-Waste and are ill-informed on its effects. The more people know about this topic, the more action we can take.

Wynter Santos

Meredith