Electronics, Waste Reduction and E-Waste Collection

You'll learn about waste reduction and recycling, specifically electronics. Everyone can make a positive difference, starting with the electronics from your own home.

Learning Objectives

Examine the environmental issues of electronic waste (e-waste)
Define and identify electronic waste (e-waste)
Know how and where to properly dispose e-waste
Promote proper disposal of e-waste using video

Background

Municipal solid waste (MSW) includes everything you discard or throw into your trash, including food scraps, grass clippings, and old appliances. Waste is a vital issue in Los Angeles County. Each person generates an average of five pounds of waste per day. This may not sound like much, but when multiplied over a period of one year, the amount of waste each person creates is staggering.

Collected MSW is separated into recyclables and compostable which can be recovered. The remainder is garbage that is transported to one of ten solid waste landfills around Los Angeles County. It costs money to dispose of it and valuable open space is used to create landfills to store unrecoverable waste.

Discarded electronics (e-waste) are electronic devices such as TVs, computers, cell phones and microwaves that have come to the end of their life, are broken, or are simply discarded. E-waste is basically any device with a plug or battery. Only 15% of e-waste is currently recycled. It is the fastest growing municipal waste stream in the U.S. Unfortunately, most e-waste ends up in landfills (cradle-to-grave). This is an issue because toxic chemicals found in e-waste often leach into the ground, or may be released into the air, impacting the environment and local communities. Thus, proper disposal of e-waste includes keeping it out of landfills.

Most of the materials used to manufacture a cell phone can be recovered to make new products (cradle-to-cradle). Metals, plastics, and rechargeable batteries from recycled cell phones are turned into new materials and products.

In addition, consumers are subject to planned obsolescence, particularly where electronics are concerned. Companies produce and sell products with a deliberately short lifespan built into the item or its necessary software. Another factor is perceived obsolescence, when better version is produced, or the original version is deemed unfashionable, although it still works.

Become an active part of the solution to an environmental concern in your community, starting with the electronics in your own home.

References:

from EPA - the secret life of smart phone

from Cal Recycle - CA e-waste recycling act

from Cal Recycle - where do I recycle e-waste?

from Cal Recycle - covered e-waste (CEW) program

Video Assignment

Watch "The Story of Electronics" video and answer embedded questions to review e-waste and its effects on global communities

Complete video assignment

Planning Meeting

First find some e-waste in your house. Not sure exactly what e-waste is? Check this list: examples of e-waste

Presentation - Electronic Waste in the World

Attend the Zoom, and have this worksheet ready to complete during the session

Submit worksheet answers

Promo Video

To increase awareness of the existence of e-waste and promote its proper disposal, you'll create a 1-2 min video.

Create promo video

Return to watch all videos. Choose three to "like". Five videos with most likes will receive one bonus point.

e-Waste Recycling

The overall project goal is to collect your own e-waste, and responsibly recycle it!