The damaging effect of electronics on the environment

Description

The number of unused or retired phones will keep growing year after year, posing an ever increasing problem for the environment. Most mobile phones have components that require specialist treatment to minimize their impact on the environment. The content of mobile phones varies from model to model, and as the technology advances so we will see changes in the composition.

Mobile phones and accessories contain concentrations of toxic heavy metals or other metals including cadmium, lead, nickel, mercury, manganese, lithium, zinc, arsenic, antimony, beryllium, and copper.

Enablers

• Technology

• Consumers

• Environmental organizations

• Global Warming

Paradigms

• Adaptation

Population and economic growth into the next century will greatly increase the demand for natural resource commodities. Even though population growth has slowed, a population of six billion growing at 1% adds the same number of people as three billion people growing at 2%. The historical success of adaptation to increased demand for these commodities is by no means a guarantee of future success.

• Recycling

Resource conservation, reuse and recycling are important parts toward sustainability. Recycling requires far less energy, uses fewer natural resources, and keeps waste from piling up in landfills.

Timing

In the course of the twentieth century technological change has driven an enormous increase in the production of goods and services. The annual output of the world economy has grown from $31 trillion in 1990 to $42 trillion in 2000; in 1950, total world output was $6.3 trillion. The ever increasing output of goods and services will fuel the scarcity of resources.

Web Resources

• http://www.rff.org/documents/RFF-DP-05-14.pdf
  

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