A study recently carried out by the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Forum looked at the recycling of small electronic objects which are rarely considered by consumers as recyclable materials, unlike other products such as smartphones, cigarettes electronics, electric toothbrushes, drones…
900 Eiffel Tower on the clock
These objects excluded from the recycling chain represent 9 million tonnes of electronic waste, or almost the weight of 900 Eiffel Tower. These devices often contain dangerous materials such as lead or mercury, which can contaminate soil and water.
A gold mine
If these objects were recycled, manufacturers could literally recover gold and other precious materials. Enough to limit waste, pollution, and even to a certain extent the mining of new materials. In 2019 alone, these lost materials - mainly iron, copper and gold - represent approximately 9.5 billion dollars. "Consumers very often do not realize that certain objects contain electronics, and as a result, these objects do not are not where they should be, which is a loss,” says Magdalena Charytanowicz, communications manager for the WEEE Forum. Around 55% of electronic waste is recovered in Europe, notably thanks to legislation, but this figure is only 17% if we consider the whole world. Source: The Verge
