Listen to the podcast.

Tech Trash - Effluent of the Affluent

Ever wonder what happens to the millions of used cell phones, computers, televisions and other electronics discarded by Americans each year?

About 2 million tons of this e-trash ends up in U.S. landfills each year, where its toxic components break down into a stew of chemicals that leach into surrounding groundwater.

But that’s not the worst part. More than half of the electronics Americans believe are safely being recycled are actually shipped overseas to poor areas of China and Africa, where many end up dumped into foreign landfills. Even those that do end being recycled in these countries are carelessly split apart and melted down by workers lacking protective clothing. In the process, the workers are exposed to toxic fumes and materials such as cadmium, lead, mercury and flame retardants, all of which can cause serious health problems, including cancer. In one area of China subjected to such a stew, the water has been undrinkable since the 1990s, showing levels of toxic metals as much as 600 times the recognized safety threshold.

The U.S. has no federal laws prohibiting the export of used computer equipment for cheap and environmentally hazardous recycling. Nor has the United States signed onto the Basel Convention, an international treaty protecting against this practice. The Bush administration has drafted legislation that would allow ratification of the treaty, but has yet to send it to Congress.

Meanwhile, Americans continue to upgrade electronic equipment at a furious pace. The typical lifespan of a computer is just two to three years, with just 10 percent of all obsolete equipment sent on for recycling. It’s unclear, however, how much of that recycling takes place in a safe and appropriate manner.

To learn more about this story, click here.

To read more about this and other environmental health issues, go to: www.environmentalhealthnews.org, www.ourstolenfuture.org, or www.healthandenvironment.org