Quote:
Originally Posted by Phil Nelson
On the other hand, I read a depressing article describing how much electronic recycling is shipped to places like China, where poor people sit amongst giant stacks of this stuff, busting it up with hand tools and breathing clouds of smoke from burning plastic and insulation, etc.
Europe seems to be far ahead of us in mandating that manufacturers accept their old products for recycling. Let them share the burden. If they had to recycle in their own back yards, I bet they would find cleaner methods than sending it off to be crushed and burned up in Asia. They would also have a strong incentive to build greener products in the first place.
Phil Nelson
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That bit about China is absolutely true. There is one village in particular that is really bad, in terns of the localized pollution and its effects. A lot of the residents are developing (have developed) cancers and other problems, and for the few who manage to get pregnant, birth defects are the norm. There have been attempts to alleviate the problems, but it's a difficult situation: the products have to be recycled somewhere, somehow, the villagers resist giving it up as it is how they make a living, and the villagers can't afford the equipment to do it cleanly/safely. Perhaps the "big dogs" who run the business end of things could, but it is difficult to coerce them to improve things. Even where they do try, like providing respirators, the villagers won't wear them because it is too hot and uncomfortable. If you built modern plants with things like airconditioning and filtration systems, the cost would be uneconomical. Even where improvements have been made, the already-existing pollution remains in the ground, and thus also in the local water table. Cleaning THAT up would be a humongous task. On the good side, that particular pollution remains a fairly localized phenomenon, affecting mostly a small(ish) area. Of course, China has a larger pollution problem, which remains a big issue to deal with.
On the good side, occasionally some of that electronic scrap gets routed through Hong Kong. When that happens, I sometimes get a chance to buy the containers or to pick through the stuff. Can't do much, especially now that my limited storage space is full and I'm trying to cut back, but I have got and have seen a few goodies from Stateside (Miracord TT, cool Zenith radio), and others have been flipped through the wholesale market and dealers here, so at least SOME of that scrapped stuff doesn't end up being bashed apart.
Then again, even the stuff that makes it through the wholesale market here may end up being shipped up North for recycling in that village area, if it doesn't sell fast enough to any buyers (guys from Africa, Afghanistan, etc...). I've sadly watched a few decent things get thrown in those trucks, without even a chance to photographically document them, let alone save them.
The simple fact is that every single day, the world is losing a real quantity of vintage electronics gear, most of it worth not much more than scrap, but some of it including things we AKers would consider treasures. It is in the nature of our consumerist society and world today. And it will only get worse, as countries like China and India, with their huge populations, are following the path that the West has before them.
It is a path driven by the profit motive, and it has brought us all a world of unparalleled opportunities and prosperity, at least in terms of our material lifestyle. But perhaps at some stage some of us need to modify our behavior, both to leave a "smaller footprint", and to speak out and encourage others. It is an unfortunate situation where the benefits of the old model are centralized with people who are motivated to perpetuate it (for example, the makers and sellers of new electronics gear), whereas the costs, and the benefits of changing it (of renovating and reusing things), are less visible, less individually motivating. But if we each do what we can, we will at least help in our own small way. If enough people eventually join us in doing this, then the problem will diminish.
But it will take a long time, and we will pay a heavier price in the longer term, before we reach a sustainable "steady state" where production and recycling are balanced, employment is stable enough, and lifestyles keep improving (if we ever do reach such a state).
Unfortunately, part of that process is also something we complain about. An iPod uses a LOT LESS material than an SX-1250; if every teenager today who buys an iPod bought a monster receiver instead, the wood cases alone would probably decimate whole forests in a hurry. The "balance" should probably be to encourage preservation of the existing "materials-heavy" items at the same time that we innovate new technologies that further save on raw materials and energy. Individually, I can choose to use pre-war fans, vintage electronics, 1950s kitchen appliances, etc... but I cannot insist that everyone else does! ...and some would argue that because they consume more electricity than newer "energy saving" models, maybe my electrical choices are not very environmentally friendly, after all... [But I do use a newer refrigerator, washing machine and dryer.
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