Electronics: The Fastest-Growing Waste Stream in Your Home

"The materials don't disappear; they just stop circulating. Mining companies extract more virgin gold and copper from the ground while millions of pounds of the same metals sit on shelves in junk rooms and lie fallow in landfills."

U.S. households hold many unused electronic devices, including phones, tablets, and chargers, and most discarded products end up in landfills or unregulated disposal rather than recycling. Electronics are the fastest-growing solid waste stream globally, with global e-waste reaching 62 million tons in 2022, up 82% since 2010. The United States generates about 46 to 48 pounds of e-waste per person per year. Discarded electronics contain recoverable metals worth about $91 billion globally, including copper, iron, and gold, but much of that value is lost to landfills and incineration. Household disposal of phones, computers, televisions, and small appliances represents billions in unrecovered metal value. Metals remain in discarded devices, reducing circulation and increasing demand for new mining.

Read at Earth911