Business PickupAs consumerism of electronic devices has accelerated, electronic waste (“e-waste”) has become a global issue. Currently, only 17% of e-waste is believed to be recycled each year, though more than 50 million metric tonnes are generated annually. We know what happens with the e-waste that’s handled properly: It’s either refurbished or broken down through legitimate recycling processes so the materials can be repurposed. Yet, much of the e-waste that isn’t handled properly makes its way into the black market. Here’s a closer look at what that means.
Examples of e-waste wrongdoings
Unfortunately, many instances of improper e-waste management start with good intentions. Oftentimes, people who think they’re getting rid of unwanted devices through the proper channels hand them over to parties that don’t actually recycle them properly. To find out what really happens when consumers send unwanted devices to e-waste recyclers, the Basel Action Network (BAN) began a tracking project in 2014.
Members of BAN placed GPS trackers on e-waste, ultimately making the discovery that devices which were supposed to go through proper channels in the U.S. and Canada were eventually winding up overseas. One U.S.-based e-waste recycler in particular, Total Reclaim, had falsified hundreds of documents to cover up a massive operation in which they’d sent more than 8 million pounds of flat screen monitors with mercury to Hong Kong, where EPA reports showed workers were at risk of poisoning.
Similar events were taking place in Canada. A 2018 report showed that some of the e-waste being sent to trusted electronics recyclers and collection sites wound up in Pakistan and Asia, including the New Territories region in Hong Kong. The area has become a global e-waste trafficking and smuggling hub, where undocumented laborers are involved in the crude and harmful breakdown of electronic equipment.
How does the e-waste black market operate?
In many cases, lack of government oversight is what allows unethical e-waste operations to continue. Extracting materials from e-waste presents an opportunity for many overseas, undocumented parties to make a lot of money. In Ghana, for instance, more than more than 150,000 tonnes of documented electronics are imported annually, though the figure is expected to be higher because the illicit trade of digital dumping is both lucrative for locals and far cheaper for exporters than properly recycling devices.
In places like the U.S., it’s legal to export discarded goods to other countries if they can be reused or refurbished. Yet, e-waste is often sent to Africa or Asia under false pretenses, despite its inability to be reused. The waste is then diverted to the black market, disguised as goods to avoid the costs of legitimate recycling.
China, the biggest creator and importer of e-waste, is particularly problematic. To address the issue of compiling e-waste and other dumping, in 2020, Chinese President Xi Jinping banned the import of waste. Nonetheless, Hong Kong has been able to exploit loopholes to import e-waste from other countries and resell the trash to other informal recyclers without any oversight from the mainland Chinese government, importing an estimated 1,000 pounds of e-waste daily. Undocumented workers continue to earn money by processing e-waste without considering the environmental burden. Many of them are self-employed and put themselves at risk for diseases caused by exposure to toxic materials, while also harming local ecosystems.
How to ensure your e-waste is handled responsibly
Companies shipping their e-waste downstream often lack visibility into where it goes next, but groups like BAN are dedicated to informing the public where their e-waste goes. Even so, the e-waste black market is a global issue calling for greater government scrutiny, regulatory oversight, and enforcement.
It may feel as though there’s not much you can do to combat improper e-waste handling on an individual level, but in fact, there are opportunities for everyone to partake in the ethical e-waste management. It all comes down to partnering with trusted e-waste recycling facilities. This means looking for certification that demonstrates the company’s commitment to proper handling and recycling practices, such as Quantum’s R2 and EPRA certifications.
At Quantum, we’re committed to transparency through every step of e-waste handling. Take a closer look into our ethical e-waste recycling processes here.