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DUKAS_185310740_NUR
Garbage Truck
A bright orange garbage truck operated by AWM (Abfallwirtschaftsbetrieb Munchen) displays a comic-style advertisement encouraging proper waste separation (''Wir trennen!'') while it drives along a street in Munich, Upper Bavaria, Bavaria, Germany, on May 26, 2025. The vehicle is part of the city's bio-waste collection service. (Photo by Michael Nguyen/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_184749603_NUR
Daily Life In Edmonton
EDMONTON, CANADA – MAY 14:
A line of parked Lime electric scooters in downtown Edmonton, on May 14, 2025, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Artur Widak/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_184409923_NUR
"Art For Your Oceans" Exhibition At Sotheby's In London
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - MAY 07, 2025: Staff members look at an artwork by Laura Ford, "Reclining Seal", 2025, during a photocall at Sotheby's auction house showcasing the ‘Art For Your Oceans’ selling exhibition with works of art donated by leading artists and created using the world's first sustainable and fully biodegradable water-based ink produced by OCEANIUM in Scotland from seaweed, in London, United Kingdom on May 07, 2025. The exhibition will be open to the public from 7 to 15th May 2025 and aims to raise funds and awareness for pioneering ocean conservation initiatives by WWF in the UK and further afield. (Photo by WIktor Szymanowicz/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_184212132_NUR
Monaco E-Prix - Previews
Frédéric Bertrand, Team Principal of Mahindra Racing during the press conference ahead of the Monaco E-Prix at Circuit de Monaco in Monte-Carlo, Monaco, on May 2, 2025. (Photo by Manuel Romano/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_184062793_NUR
Shanghai Auto Show 2025 Day
A Wuling Hongguang Mini EV is at the IM Motor auto booth in the National Exhibition Center in Shanghai, China, on April 28, 2025, during the Shanghai Automobile Show 2025. (Photo by Ying Tang/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_183685731_NUR
Electric Bus In Frankfurt
A brightly colored electric public bus with the slogan 'Ich bin ein Stromer!' ('I am an electric vehicle!') operates on line M36 in Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany, on August 15, 2023. The bus is part of the city's sustainable transportation initiative led by Stadt Frankfurt am Main and the local transport operator. (Photo by Michael Nguyen/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_183264489_NUR
UPS Electric Cargo Bike On City Street
A UPS electric cargo bike drives through an intersection during a delivery in Antwerp, Belgium, on August 1, 2023. Electric cargo bikes are part of UPS's sustainable urban logistics efforts to reduce emissions in dense city areas. (Photo by Michael Nguyen/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_182724106_NUR
Bruno Bonnell Visits The Bois Paille Factory In Villefranche-sur-Saone
An employee of the Bois Paille factory in Villefranche-sur-Saone, France, on March 20, 2025. The company designs, manufactures, and sells timber-framed walls insulated with straw bales and bio-sourced materials. (Photo by Romain Doucelin/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_182724097_NUR
Bruno Bonnell Visits The Bois Paille Factory In Villefranche-sur-Saone
An employee of the Bois Paille factory in Villefranche-sur-Saone, France, on March 20, 2025. The company designs, manufactures, and sells timber-framed walls insulated with straw bales and bio-sourced materials. (Photo by Romain Doucelin/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_182724029_NUR
Bruno Bonnell Visits The Bois Paille Factory In Villefranche-sur-Saone
An employee of the Bois Paille factory in Villefranche-sur-Saone, France, on March 20, 2025. The company designs, manufactures, and sells timber-framed walls insulated with straw bales and bio-sourced materials. (Photo by Romain Doucelin/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_182723989_NUR
Bruno Bonnell Visits The Bois Paille Factory In Villefranche-sur-Saone
An employee of the Bois Paille factory in Villefranche-sur-Saone, France, on March 20, 2025. The company designs, manufactures, and sells timber-framed walls insulated with straw bales and bio-sourced materials. (Photo by Romain Doucelin/NurPhoto) -
DUKAS_173188220_EYE
How a monk and a Hippo joined forces to tackle Bangkok’s plastic pollution
Desperate to restore the Chao Praya River to a pristine state, an abbot in the Thai capital began recycling in his temple. Now he has a floating ally in his efforts to clean up the river.
The Chao Phraya River is the largest waterway flowing through central Thailand.
In Bangkok, it is an artery for a network of water buses, ferries and wooden long-tail boats. But it's not just carrying people. According to research by the Rotterdam-based non-profit organisation Ocean Cleanup, the Chao Praya River carries 4,000 tonnes of plastic waste to the sea every year.
Workers sew orange robes for monks from fabric made from recycled plastic at Wat Chak Daeng on July 30, 2024 in Bangkok. The HIPPO project by Seven Clean Seas, in collaboration with Wat Chak Daeng temple, uses a solar-powered vessel to collect plastic waste from Bangkok's Chao Phraya River and recycles it to reduce environmental pollution. Phra Mahapranom Dhammalangkaro, the abbot, leads a project at Wat Chak Daeng that turns plastic waste into monk robes, upcycling around 40 tons of plastic since 2015 and serving as a model for environmental conservation.
Lauren DeCicca / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
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(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
Photo by Lauren DeCicca -
DUKAS_173188218_EYE
How a monk and a Hippo joined forces to tackle Bangkok’s plastic pollution
Desperate to restore the Chao Praya River to a pristine state, an abbot in the Thai capital began recycling in his temple. Now he has a floating ally in his efforts to clean up the river.
The Chao Phraya River is the largest waterway flowing through central Thailand.
In Bangkok, it is an artery for a network of water buses, ferries and wooden long-tail boats. But it's not just carrying people. According to research by the Rotterdam-based non-profit organisation Ocean Cleanup, the Chao Praya River carries 4,000 tonnes of plastic waste to the sea every year.
Workers sew orange robes for monks from fabric made from recycled plastic at Wat Chak Daeng on July 30, 2024 in Bangkok. The HIPPO project by Seven Clean Seas, in collaboration with Wat Chak Daeng temple, uses a solar-powered vessel to collect plastic waste from Bangkok's Chao Phraya River and recycles it to reduce environmental pollution. Phra Mahapranom Dhammalangkaro, the abbot, leads a project at Wat Chak Daeng that turns plastic waste into monk robes, upcycling around 40 tons of plastic since 2015 and serving as a model for environmental conservation.
Lauren DeCicca / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
Photo by Lauren DeCicca -
DUKAS_156237534_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
An employee plastic wraps microwaves and loaded on pallets at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237597_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Piles of shredded copper at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237537_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Shredded plastic on a conveyor belt at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237583_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Buckets for brass, copper and batteries at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237508_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Shredded plastic on a conveyor belt at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237527_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Shredded plastic on a conveyor belt at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237538_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Shredded plastic on a conveyor belt at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237585_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Shredded plastic on a conveyor belt at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237519_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Computers are plastic wrapped and stored on pallets at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237614_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Cords and cables are piled in boxes at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237592_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Computers are plastic wrapped and stored on pallets at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237578_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Computers are plastic wrapped and stored on pallets at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237533_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
TV’s are plastic wrapped and stored on pallets at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237613_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Aaron Blum, Co-Founder / Chief Operating and Compliance Officer of ERI (Electronic Recyclers International), poses for a portrait at the ERI Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237591_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Aaron Blum, Co-Founder / Chief Operating and Compliance Officer of ERI (Electronic Recyclers International), poses for a portrait at the ERI Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237520_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employee jumpsuits and helmets at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237530_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees socialize at the end of their shift at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237610_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Electronic waste is piled up at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237611_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Aaron Blum, Co-Founder / Chief Operating and Compliance Officer of ERI (Electronic Recyclers International), poses for a portrait at the ERI Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237514_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Aaron Blum, Co-Founder / Chief Operating and Compliance Officer of ERI (Electronic Recyclers International), poses for a portrait at the ERI Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237595_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Aaron Blum, Co-Founder / Chief Operating and Compliance Officer of ERI (Electronic Recyclers International), poses for a portrait at the ERI Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237589_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Aaron Blum, Co-Founder / Chief Operating and Compliance Officer of ERI (Electronic Recyclers International), poses for a portrait at the ERI Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237615_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Super sacks are filled with precious metals (gold, silver and palladium), aluminum, steel, plastic and copper, at finished goods commodity section of the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237517_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
TV’s are loaded onto pallets at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237511_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort through electronic waste beside the shredder at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237513_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort through electronic waste beside the shredder at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237516_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort through electronic waste beside the shredder at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237529_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
TV’s are loaded onto pallets at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237528_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort through electronic waste beside the shredder at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237536_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort through electronic waste beside the shredder at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237535_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort through electronic waste beside the shredder at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237590_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort through electronic waste beside the shredder at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237531_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Shredded steel is moved on a conveyor belt to the steel pit at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237515_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort through electronic waste beside the shredder at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237587_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Electronics are loaded on to the shredder’s conveyor belt at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237609_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Electronics are taken up to the shredder on a conveyor belt at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
DUKAS_156237509_EYE
'I spot brand new TVs, here to be shredded': the truth about our electronic waste
In a giant factory in California, thousands of screens, PCs and other old or unwanted gadgets are picked apart for materials. But what about the billions of other defunct (or not) devices?
Waste electrical and electronic equipment (better known by its unfortunate acronym, Weee) is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. Electronic waste amounted to 53.6m tonnes in 2019, a figure growing at about 2% a year. Consider: in 2021, tech companies sold an estimated 1.43bn smartphones, 341m computers, 210m TVs and 548m pairs of headphones. And that's ignoring the millions of consoles, sex toys, electric scooters and other battery-powered devices we buy every year.
Globally, only 17.4% of electronic waste is recycled. Between 7% and 20% is exported, 8% thrown into landfills and incinerators in the global north, and the rest is unaccounted for. Yet Weee is, by weight, among the most precious waste there is. One piece of electronic equipment can contain 60 elements, from copper and aluminium to rarer metals such as cobalt and tantalum, used in everything from motherboards to gyroscopic sensors. A typical iPhone, for example, contains 0.018g of gold, 0.34g of silver, 0.015g of palladium and a tiny fraction of platinum. Multiply by the sheer quantity of devices and the impact is vast: a single recycler in China, GEM, produces more cobalt than the country’s mines each year. The materials in our e-waste - including up to 7% of the world's gold reserves - are worth £50.9bn a year.
Employees sort out e-waste at the ERI (Electronic Recyclers International) Recycling Facility. Fresno, Calafornia - May 23, 2023:
© Philip Cheung / Guardian / eyevine
Contact eyevine for more information about using this image:
T: +44 (0) 20 8709 8709
E: info@eyevine.com
http://www.eyevine.com
(FOTO: DUKAS/EYEVINE)
© Guardian / eyevine. All Rights Reserved. -
