By: Kendall Lui

THE EFFECT E-WASTE HAS

ON THE WORLD AND WHAT
WE CAN DO TO MINIMIZE
THE WORLD'S DAMAGE.
E-waste in America!

Kendall Lui October 2010

What is e-waste?
E-waste stands for electronic waste.
Which is any electronic product that is
not working or used anymore. Things
such as:

And much much more….

Kendall Lui October 2010
What is so bad about e-waste?
 E-waste may contain toxic materials
such as lead and mercury.
 E-waste is usually dumped in a trash bin
which can contaminate soil and the
ocean which is bad for our enviroment.

Kendall Lui October 2010

What shall we do about it?
We should recycle it !! W
Hurray!! R
O
N
G
We can’t just recycle it because 80% of the e-
waste “recycled” in the U.S. is exported to other
countries specifically developing countries.

Kendall Lui October 2010

What does this mean?
 We ship our e-waste to countries that
don’t have proper equipment to safely
recycle this waste.
 Countries like, China, Ghana, and India
get our waste
Some villages in China are “specialized”
in this trade.
 Guiyu China is the world’s biggest dump
for e-waste.
 People of all ages from toddlers to
seniors work to mine the little gold in the
circuit boards.
Let’s take a field trip!!
 We will see what happens after we
leave our waste at an e-waste recycling
center.

Kendall Lui October 2010

The e-waste “recycler”
 When you give your e-waste to any e-
waste “recycler” 80% chances are that
you are just giving it to them to sort and
package the e-waste for shipping.
This boat and many
other boats will carry
thousands of tons of e-
waste to other
countries.
When the E waste arrives it is distributed
among the families in the village.

 Most of the families in the village own a

e-waste “recycling” shop.

This family owned

shop is filled with
thousands of circuit
boards which may
contain lead and
mercury.
The e-waste is then dismantled and mined
for gold, and copper.
 Many circuit boards contain a little of
gold, lead and copper that can be
melted and reused in other circuit
boards.

This worker is
heating up the
circuit board to
remove the
solder.

Kendall Lui October 2010

What effects does the e-waste industry
have on Guiyu?
One good thing that the e-waste industry has on Guiyu
is that it created $75 million dollars for the town.
However due to chemicals in the e-waste:

 Children in Guiyu have an extremely

high rate of getting lead poisoning.
 Also Guiyu has the most cancer-causing
dioxins in the world.
 Guiyu has a high rate of miscarriages.
Now to top it off!
 All the excess matter such as the
burned coal, ashes, and acids (used to
clean ciruit boards) are dumped into
canals and waterways.
Enough already! What can we do about
it?

Kendall Lui October 2010

Watch what you buy and how much you
buy.
• Many companies like Apple are
changing the way their products are
made to reduce toxins and chemicals in
their products.
Find real e-waste recyclers.
 A group of activist called the Basel
Action Network or (BAN) are trying to
fight the exportation of e-waste to
developing companies. Check out their
website to find a responsible e-waste
recycler at http://www.ban.org/.
E-waste is a growing problem in our world today because technology is rapidly
advancing which means that we are going to be getting rid of last year’s cell phone and
computer faster. I hope by showing you what happens to most e-waste you will make
better choices about buying and disposing of e-waste.
Works cited
 Bryan, Walsh. "E-Waste Not - TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs,
News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. Time Magazine, 08 Jan. 2009.
Web. 9 Oct. 2010.
<http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1870485,00.html>.
 Chung, Chien-min, and Getty. "China's Electronic Waste Village - Photo Essays -
TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech
Reviews - TIME.com. Time Magazine, 2009. Web. 14 Oct. 2010.
<http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1870162_1822154,00.html>.
 Heimbuch, Jayme. "New Online System Streamlines Easy E-Waste Collection."
Treehugger. Discovery, 11 Oct. 10. Web. 13 Oct. 10.
<http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/10/new-online-system-streamlines-easy-
free-e-waste-collection.php>.
 Puckett, By Jim. "A Victory for Environment and Justice: The Basel Ban and How
It Happened." Basel Action Network (BAN). Basel Action Network (BAN), 1984.
Web. 14 Oct. 2010. <http://www.ban.org/about_basel_ban/a_victory.html>.
 United Nations University. "Hazardous E-Waste Surging in Developing Countries."
ScienceDaily 23 February 2010. 13 October 2010 <http://www.sciencedaily.com­
/releases/2010/02/100222081911.htm>.