Electrical and electronic equipment have become an essential part of human life. This fact combined with the technological changes and the rapid update of electronic products, generate a large amount of devices that need to be replaced. The replacement occurs either because the devices don’t function anymore, due to their short life span, or because of the new trend which is to purchase the updated items. In a few words, the growth in the electronics industry combined with the rapid technological advancements have led to a constant stream of new products and additionally a decrease in the life span of electronics occurs. All these facts contribute to a major issue which is the generation of e-waste. Worldwide, the e-waste generation from 2018 to 2022 increased by 16,5% and specifically in Europe the e-waste generation increased by 6,5%.
In Figure in left it is illustrated how e-waste generation increased Worldwide during the period 2018-2022.
Management of e-waste is a big challenge to the human society not only because of the volume that is generated, which increases rapidly, but also because there is a list of e-waste associated toxicants. The e-waste consists hazardous materials such as cadmium, nickel, hexavalent chromium, mercury, lead and brominated flame retardants which end up to the environment creating severe impacts to the environment and to human health. In a few words, the main issue regarding e-waste that should concern us all is how the proper e-waste management will be applied in order to prevent environmental pollution and secure human health.
📌Here comes the essential role of our eWAsTER project, aiming to promote local and regional policies for better e-waste management, to reduce e-waste environmental damage in the selected project areas, while promoting new innovative eco-business models based on the conversion of the currently lineal electrical and electronic (E&E) sector into a sustainable circular model.
✍🏻Publication, prepared by (PP3) RETHYMNO.
Follow our social media for more updates about the project activities and more information about the e-waste at all!
Some specific posts are coming soon:
- Why e-waste recycling is crucial?
- How e-waste pollutes the environment?
- How e-waste pollution influences our health?
