The Future of eWaste Recycling
“E-Waste” is what we call electronic products that are no longer useful (or that will soon be obsolete). This includes everything from outdated computers that your business is taking out of service to printers, copiers, servers, and even old smart phones, fax machines, and projectors.
It’s estimated that around 52 million tons of e-waste were produced in 2021, with that number projected to reach 111 million tons by 2050. Electronics have become the world’s fastest growing solid waste stream.
Unfortunately, collection rates of e-waste are lagging at around 20% on average, in spite of educational efforts and government policies. Even today, most of the e-waste generated is not properly treated.
When companies are forced to recycle by regulation, the result is often a stream of e-waste outsourced to foreign countries where regulations are lax.
The barriers to e-waste recycling are often:
- Lack of knowledge on where and how to recycle aging equipment.
- The inconvenience of recycling, including the dedicated man-hours necessary.
- Concern over data security and information theft from old devices.
- No incentives to recycle. When it is easy to fill the trash and difficult to recycle, human nature takes over.
At Protec Recycling, we solve these problems for businesses every day. We know everything about recycling opportunities with a wide range of electronics, including peripherals, cables, modems, routers, and more. We make recycling convenient, bringing our experts on site to handle data security, maintain a chain of custody, and recycle your electronics without putting toxic waste in landfills.
We can even work with you to remarket your aging electronics is ways that generate a revenue stream for your business, giving you an incentive to recycle with Protec.
While e-waste is definitely a global problem, it’s also a local problem. If your business has e-waste —whether it’s a bunch of old electronics you have sitting around in need of one time clean up or devices that age out of use on a regular basis— Protec Recycling can present you with recycling options you might not have considered.
The Start of a Circular Economy for Electronics
According to an article at Global Recycling.info, “if developed in the right way, employing a circular economy for the electronics and the e-waste sector could create millions of jobs worldwide.”
There is economic value in e-Waste. A ton of smartphones contains 100 times more gold than a ton of gold ore. According to the latest forecasts, e-Waste is worth more than $62 Billion annually. That’s worth more than all the world’s silver mines.
Creating an economic cycle where electronics are produced with recycling and reuse in mind is a goal of the World Economic Forum. They envision new jobs for designers, circular economists, urban mine specialists, and EaaS (electronics as a service) officers.
In Alabama, Protec Recycling is leading the way. We do electronic recycling with an attention to security and sustainability that is second to none, and without allowing any toxic electronic waste to reach landfills.
Schedule One-Time or Ongoing Professional E-Waste Disposal Services
From one-time purges to regularly scheduled service, Protec helps you regularly (and properly) dispose of e-Waste. To schedule a pickup, call our office at 205-549-2120 or visit our Contact Us page today.
