The world’s population produced 62 million tons of electronic waste, or e-waste, in 2022. That is an annual growth of 2.6 million tons since 2010. Despite these growing numbers, only 22.3 percent of e-waste gets correctly disposed of. In fact, 14 million tons (22.6 percent) of all e-waste ends up in landfills or is destroyed.
According to the Global E-waste Monitor 2024 by Unitar, the UN Institute for Training and Research, the recycling rate is expected to drop to just 20 percent by 2030. This is due to the faster growth of e-waste relative to recycling opportunities. So, the waste is accumulating five times faster than it can be disposed of.
That’s in the “business as usual” scenario, by the way. If waste disposal improves, this 20 percent could rise to 38 in the “progressive” scenario.
Europe appears to be one of the largest producers of e-waste, with an average of 17.6 kilograms per capita. However, Europe’s recycling rate is also the highest of all measured continents (42.8 percent). In Africa, less than one percent of e-waste is recycled, but the average amount of waste per person is “just” two and a half kilograms there.
Human and environmental damage
According to the report, improperly disposing of e-waste directly threatens human health and the environment, with potentially harmful substances such as mercury that can damage the brain and the environment. Much is also lost economically, with as much as $62 billion in reusable materials disappearing due to improper disposal.
Although recycling leads to economic benefits (such as reused metals returning to the production cycle), the balance sheet for e-waste management is currently $37 billion in the red annually. This includes the costs of improper or inefficient recycling and the millions of tons of rare metals that disappear into a landfill. Also added are estimated indirect costs resulting from environmental pollution, health costs and contributions to global warming.
No longer sustainable
The report measures several less-than-stellar alternatives between the “ideal” disposal of e-waste and simply throwing the waste in a landfill. Sixteen million tons in rich countries are recycled outside official systems in ways that evade proper laws and regulations.
Eighteen million tons are reused informally in developing countries where proper disposal oversight is lacking. Of all electronic waste, 31 million tons are metal, 17 million tons are plastic, and the remaining 14 million consists of minerals, glass, and composite materials.
According to Kees Baldé of Unitar, this report is an urgent call to action. He emphasizes the need for investment in infrastructure, a greater focus on repair and reuse, and measures to combat illegal e-waste exports. According to him, it is clear that the current trajectory is no longer sustainable.
Photo credit: Muntaka Chasant
Also read: “240 million Windows 10 PCs will become e-waste by 2025”
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