Why computer recycling is important?
September 06, 2013
As technology is changing very fast, handling of obsolete computers is becoming a major problem for everyone. The solution is computer recycling. Instead of throwing out old computers, it is necessary to find out ways for reusing its different parts. We have jotted down a few reasons why computer recycling is important?
Environmental Hazards – Computers are bulky structures and when dumped in the garbage without much thought they can cause adverse environmental effects. Computer parts contain various metals like mercury, lead, cadmium, silicon, aluminum and others. These metals get mixed with air, water and soil. It is estimated that a computer can contain up to 2 kilograms of lead which when mixed with soil and water can cause tremendous environmental hazards.
Saving Resources – Moreover, recycling of metals diminishes the need of extracting precious resources from the mines and thus saves the mother earth in the long run.
Cost – efficient – Computers also contain plastics, wires, glass, electronic boards etc which can be easily dismantled. The components can be sold as scrap to many companies which deal with these products. Another way of recycling computers is to sell these to stores which deal with refurbished items. They can integrate different parts from various computers and can make new computers which can be used. Refurbished ones are often low in cost. Many growing companies which require computers for their operational purposes can get these at bulk rate.
Developed countries generally export their electronic waste products to developing countries. But with time it is expected that regulation about acceptance of used & toxic computers products will be stringent in developing countries also.
Those who cannot afford expensive laptops or new branded computers can buy refurbished computers. These items can either be donated to a school, any non-profit organization or to someone who is less privileged. We often discard computers which are few years old and prefer having the latest ones. But it often happens, just by changing few parts we get the required results. Thus we not only manage to save money but also actively contribute to the recycling process.
Recycling of computer is becoming so important that many multinational companies are now incorporating recycling in their policies. They are providing their customers the total recycle facility. According to many companies, it is helping them to lower the cost of procurement of raw materials.