While studying abroad two years ago, I loaned a stateside
friend my television.
I never saw the 14-incher again.
So maybe I should have been thankful when, a month ago, my
brother donated to me a 27-inch gem. Sadly, its depth was about the same
dimension—a behemoth in this age of flat screens. I lugged the cube to an Arc
thrift store in hopes that someone else could sacrifice the space.
But what if no one can? I’m assuming Arc stows things for a
finite time. Then where do the “ancient” devices go? Ideally, it wouldn’t clank
into place atop a landfill peak. But I didn’t make the inquiry. The fate of
that box of metal, plastic and glass is a mystery.
(Yes, I could go back and ask Arc. But what follows is my
point.)
What other electronic goodies have I—you—thrown away lately,
or are planning to soon? Maybe you’re ditching your five-year-old iPod since it
looks like you drag it from your car’s bumper. Oh, and that fresh smartphone
makes your Internet-less one look like a punk.
A hefty but intriguing article from PBS Media Shift looks at
the impending (well, already worrisome) overflow of e-waste as our collective
craving for digital media inflates. (It’s so delicious—Twitter gave me the PBS
heads-up.) Technological advances, as rapid as they are, will transcend what
was “now” with what’s just slightly more, uh, now. We’re a growing sect of
addicts tweaking for the fastest information and the most extreme
connectedness.
Yet our paperless drug doesn’t inherently yield
sustainability. A market analyst firm said that of the 53 tons of e-waste
procured around the globe in 2009, a slim 13 percent was recycled. As the PBS
article notes, there aren’t yet any true standards to which companies and
manufacturers must adhere for the creation and disposal of their products.
(Recycling aside: Ponder the energy and resources that go into bringing our “babies”
into existence.) Some groups have taken it upon themselves to make ostensibly
positive strides. The Apple on which I type boasts the number-five slot on the
Greanpeace Greener Electronics rankings.
Although some states have enacted laws mandating e-recycling
(not Colorado), consider being a bit more conscious of the pass-along
destination of your outdated devices. You can be that first filter blocking the
permeation of old, toxic MP3s into wasteyards. Ask the question of Arc that I
didn’t; politely challenge/encourage them if the answer doesn’t satisfy. If
your new printer cartridge comes with a hopefully-postage-paid recycling bag
for the former one, use it. Better, how about sending it to a cool project like
this Australian bicycle path made of empty inks?
Or simply hoard the Zune, or whatever the gadget(s) might be.
Show your grandkids how cool you once were while they scoff at you, riding away
on these.
Ryan Arnold
@ryarnold
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