New Study: Only 24% of the End-of-Life Electronic Waste is Reused Responsibly

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The new research report published by Blancco Technology Group highlights the big discrepancy between sustainability policies and actual end-of-life electronics recycled by corporations.

According to the report, only 24% of the electronic waste is sanitized and reused responsibly. This is despite 83% of such corporate having a well-defined Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy in place. This, coupled with unethical practices followed by enterprises that lack sustainability policies tend to cause surge in e-waste across the globe.

The report notes that nearly 40% of the organizations resort to physical destruction of end-of-life IT equipment, based on their belief that it is better for the environment when compared with reusing or recycling. It poses the risk of exposing personnel to hazardous materials including lead and mercury. Moreover, there are chances of them ending up in landfills, which in turn may cause damage to environment.

Blancco Technology Group report recommends that corporations should manage retired IT assets in a more environment friendly way.

The failure is attributed to three reasons- lack of education, lack of ownership and communication and weak regulation policies. Incidentally, as many as 22 U.S. states don’t even have e-waste laws in place, the report said.

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