Some waste is hazardous and must be handled carefully.

KEY CONCEPT 7.5

Some solid waste, including e-waste, is considered hazardous and must be disposed of properly to reduce the risk to workers, avoid environmental contamination, and reclaim valuable mineral resources.

A large part of our solid waste stream includes hazardous waste (waste that presents a health risk of some kind). Modern households often contain a bevy of dangerous chemicals and products, ranging from household cleaners, paints, and automotive supplies to fluorescent light bulbs and batteries that should not be disposed of with the regular trash.

hazardous waste

Waste that is toxic, flammable, corrosive, explosive, or radioactive.

In some areas of China, the process of recovering electronic waste is not done safely and exposes workers and the community at large to toxic substances.
©Liang Xu/Xinhua/ZUMAPRESS.com

A new, modern category of hazardous waste is e-waste, discarded electronic devices such as computers, cell phones, and televisions—any device that contains a circuit board. These devices contain significant amounts of precious and rare-earth metals (see LaunchPad Chapter 26); reclaiming these materials from e-waste can reduce our need to extract them from mines, a process with a huge environmental impact. But many countries (including the United States) send some of their e-waste to countries in Asia and Africa, where impoverished villagers do their best to extract the precious metals within. It’s dangerous work. In addition to gold, copper, and zinc, e-waste contains a suite of toxic metals such as lead, mercury, and chromium. When they are released by unsafe and poor extraction methods, these substances cause a wide range of medical conditions in workers or community members—from birth defects to brain, lung, and kidney damage to cancer. The soil, air, and water surrounding e-waste disposal sites don’t fare much better: Toxic chemicals are released into all three during these unsafe extraction processes. INFOGRAPHIC 7.5

e-waste

Unwanted computers and other electronic devices such as discarded televisions and cell phones.

HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTES

Hazardous wastes are those that are toxic, flammable, explosive, or corrosive (like acids). Many chemicals that enter your home are actually hazardous and should not be discarded in the regular household trash. The EPA recommends that you contact your local solid waste agency for information on disposing hazardous materials. You can also call 1-877-EARTH-911.

How can you safely dispose of hazardous waste in your community?

Answers will vary — disposal instructions can usually be found at state, city or county solid waste webpages. Some searching might be required.

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