Do you know where your e-waste is going?
Bloomberg recently reported that it probably found your e-waste…in a small town in Mexico being disassembled by workers who are unprotected from the Lead, Mercury or other toxic chemicals in the phones, computers or other electronics shipped there. And it is shipped there in spite of EPR (Extended Producer Responsibility) laws that say the manufacturers are responsible for this waste.
The problem is complex and simple at the same time. It is complex because EPR laws are riddled with loopholes that allow the manufacturers to skirt their responsibility. It is simple because the reason is simple. Manufacturers simply want to shift the costs to local governments rather than do what is right.
Government is not off the hook. How many local governments actually follow up on contractors that they higher to insure that the e-waste that they collect is processed in a responsible manner? Many turn a blind eye since they are also driven by the need to keep costs down.
This has to end. We do not have the right to risk the health and safety of poorer people because we do not want to pay $5 more or even $35 more for our electronic devices.
Read the full article:
We Found Your Last Smartphone, Next to Your Old VCR