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CHAPTER

Recycling

f and when it comes time to replace your organization’s computers, you’ll have a
number of options—some more environmentally sound than others. Although you
Ilikely will want to enlist the aid of a reputable recycler, other options are open to you,
such as donating or repurposing those computers. Additionally, no matter what you do to
get those boxes out of your offices, you absolutely want to get rid of the information stored
on your hard drives.
In this chapter, we’ll talk about recycling and its importance. We’ll also talk about some
alternatives to recycling and explain how you can keep your organization’s information safe
once you do get rid of your old computers.

Problems

It’s no big secret that computers contain harmful toxins, and when they are disposed of
improperly, the environment pays the price. But it isn’t just the environment that gets hurt
when computers are irresponsibly disposed of—in the end, we hurt ourselves. Poisons from
computers first affect the people who are stripping them down for precious metals. But after
that, the air and groundwater can become contaminated.
It’s also no big secret that a lot of end-of-life computers wind up in China and Africa.
But they’re half a world away, so it’s their problem, right? In this section, we’ll take a closer
look at just how big a problem e-waste has become for China and Africa. We’ll also talk
about the toxins that are in computers that make responsible recycling so important.

China
The tales of e-waste in China have made headlines in recent years. It’s no surprise that
the stories have been newsworthy, but it is a surprise that we hadn’t heard them earlier.
America ships to China up to 80 percent of its e-waste. In addition to the U.S., Canada,
Japan, and South Korea send their e-waste to Guiyu, China. In 2006, the U.S. exported
enough e-waste to cover a football field and rise a mile into the sky. Most of the waste winds
up in the small port city of Guiyu. It’s a town 4 hours from Hong Kong that is home to 5500
“recyclers.” Guiyu’s location is shown in Figure 7-1.

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