The benefits of refurbishing, rather than recycling e-waste

[et_pb_section admin_label=”section”] [et_pb_row admin_label=”row”] [et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text”]In the U.S. and around the world, the mismanagement of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE, or e-waste) has become an extremely important economic, environmental and social issue. According to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), the U.S. alone accounts for at least 2.4 million tons of e-waste annually. In many cases, this waste ends up in landfills, posing extreme risks to the balance of adjacent ecosystems. It has been estimated that only about 27% of U.S. e-waste, by weight, is recycled, but even the waste that is “recycled” has proven to be problematic.^[1] There is near-universal agreement that the disturbingly prevalent “unsafe handling of used electronics and e-waste in developing countries… results in harm to human health and the environment.”^[2] Because the U.S. has not ratified the Basel Convention — an international treaty intended to reduce the movement of e-waste from developed to developing nations — “it is estimated that 50–80 percent of the e-waste collected for recycling in the U.S. is actually exported to developing countries,”^[3] where regulations on worker safety and environmental responsibility are lax or nonexistent. The mass-exportation of WEEE is partly attributable to a “global slump in commodities” which has made many e-waste recycling practices economically inefficient.^[4][5] According to an NBC report on the rising cost of responsible e-waste disposal, it costs “about $40 a pound to process a ton of trash, a cost that skyrockets to $360 a pound for electronics waste.” That price tag has disincentivized many recyclers and contributed to an increase in the cheap exportation and landfilling of hazardous discarded electronics. According to Mike Satter, the vice president of the electronics recycling firm, OceanTech, “e-waste recycling businesses have to change their focus. Instead of stripping electronics for the raw materials, they should put more effort into refurbishing old computers and TVs.”^[5] The process of refurbishing e-waste is preferable to recycling for a number of reasons. By extending the viability of computers, we extract greater value from the investment of production — about 75% of fossil fuels and energy used by a computer are consumed during initial manufacture.^[6] By giving a computer a second life through reclamation, refurbishment and reuse, we work to validate that initial carbon footprint. The refurbishment also reduces landfill waste and helps to ameliorate the environmental impact of rampant mismanagement in the e-waste recycling industry. Furthermore, the refurbishment provides a product that can help to bridge the digital divide, domestically, while helping to reduce unemployment^[6]. At RRRcomputer.org, every refurbished computer corresponds to another young scholar crossing the digital divide and developing the technological literacy necessary to effectively navigate the information age. Because of its status as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, your donations to RRRcomputer.org may qualify as tax-deductible. If your unwanted computer is still in good working condition (used, but functional) and is valued beyond the IRS’s requisite $250 appraisal, your donation to RRRcomputer.org will be tax deductible! It is important to remember, however, that not all in-kind computer donations to RRRcomputer.org need to qualify as being in “good working condition”. RRRcomputer.org is happy to accept those computers that need a little love, and the IRS is willing to offer tax breaks to those donations when they surpass a $500 valuation.^[7] So, by opting to donate a computer for refurbishment, you reduce the considerable carbon footprint of your computer, circumvent the moral grey zone of export-recycling and encourage the social mobility and technological literacy of Bay Area students — all at a saving to you. Help us to save the environment, empower the next generation of change-makers, and close the e-waste cycle; help yourself to a helping of good karma with a considerable financial incentive. Donate your used computer to RRRcomputer.org! [1] U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, International Cooperation, 2016 [2] EPA, 2016 [3] National Center for Biotechnology Information, 2016 [4] NBC, 2016 [5] NBC, Old TVs Create Toxic Problem for Recycling Programs Across America, 2016  Techsoup.org, 2017 [6] The Atlantic, The Global Cost of Electronic Waste [7] IRS Publication 526, 2017[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column] [/et_pb_row] [/et_pb_section]