Short Answers Flashcards
Name one toxic substance that can be found in cell phones
Mercury, arsenic, lead.
Name the largest e-waste dump in Africa
Agbogbloshie
Name one feature of an informal economy
- Jobs are not taxed
- Not monitored by the government
- Not counted as part of the country’s economic output.
What types of countries generate the most e-waste?
MEDC
Why do some people/countries want to receive e-waste?
It provides income
What product and remain in the environment for a very long time after being disposed of in landfill?
Lead
What are the causes of e-waste? List them. (6)
- Life span and quality of products
- Trends
- Advertising
- Planned obsolescence
- Unwanted so thrown out
- Social pressure
How much e-waste is produced in NZ?
It is estimated that 300 to 400 million pieces of electronic waste are dumped in New Zealand each year, less than 20% of which is recycled. 80,000 tonnes
List the 4 ways of reducing the amount of e-waste that is generated.
- The 4 R’s of e-waste management - recycle, reuse, reduce, redesign
- Passing laws to reduce, control or stop e-waste being produced or traded.
- Product stewardship - the whole of society approach
- Designing green(er) products.
Recycle
To break down the product into different materials and re-construct those metals. However, without safety equipment, recycling e-waste can be harmful.
Reuse
To use some thing again rather than throw it away, continuing the ‘life’ of the product. E.g. some parts of a cell-phone that are broken can be replaced - not throwing away the whole thing.
Reduction
Less waste is created and less is thrown away into landfills. This can be done by reducing the volume of and decreasing the toxicity of waste though product and package deign. You can save money, energy and raw materials
Redesign
The original design of a product is modified or changed so that less waste is created in the future, products can be more durable, re-usable, and recyclable. e.g. packing products in recyclable materials rather than polystyrene.
Product stewardship
Everyone accepts responsibility for the environmental effects of products from the time they are produced until the end of their useful life and disposal. e.g. in NZ the Ministry for the Environment encourages that the cost of disposing the unwanted product is included in the price that consumers pay. If this is not done, then the disposal costs are paid by all of society
Passing laws - Basel Convention
It aims to:
- on reducing trade in e-waste between developed countries and developing countries
- reduce the amount of e-waste that is produced and on how toxic it is
- to manage e-waste in a way where there is the least harm caused to the environment
179 countries have signed, however, the USA, Haiti and Afghanistan have not ratified it, (not made official).
