Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Hour 5
21st Century Issues
E-Waste Burning. Digital image. Io9. EMPA, 13 July 2012. Web. 20 May 2015.
Executive Summary
Actions/Solutions
Current Solutions
Proposed Solution
Project Description
Problem Statement
Driving Question
SMART Goal
Evaluation
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Works Cited
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Bibliography
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Contact Information
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Introduction
E-waste, short for electronic waste, is
the term used to describe any electrical
appliance that has reached the end of its
useful life. There are currently two main
paths for E-waste to take after it has
been disposed, it could be recycled or
thrown in the trash. Disposal will lead to
a landfill and waste of the precious
materials contained. It is estimated that
1 million recycled phones would contain
50 lbs of gold, 550 lbs of silver and 20 lbs
of palladium (ElectronicsTakeback). Ewaste given away to be recycled has
more options. It could be refurbished
and sold again if it's in good condition,
taken apart and sold as materials, or the
worst outcome, exported to a developing
E-waste landfill. Digital image. Mail in Mobile. Blogs.ubc.ca, n.d. Web. 20 May 2015.
A Chinese child sits amongst a pile of wires. Digital image. GreenPeace. GreenPeace, n.d. Web. 20 May 2015.
Executive Summary
Protecting the Future from E-waste is an
attempt to explain the current situation
of issues caused by e-waste and with it
educate the public on the importance of
making changes that will lead to a better
future. This white paper is also an
attempt to explain that the size of these
issues will only increase as time goes on
and stresses the importance of everyone
doing their small part to fix a big
problem. Protecting the Future from Ewaste suggests that anyone able and
Lemmerman-Streifert, Jade. The growth of e-waste. Digital image. CCNY Tech. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2015.
Current Solutions
An intern at Indiana University hosted a
recycling collection event and conducted
a case study on the habits and motives of
people recycling (Knudsen). After
conducting several surveys they found
out that most people do not recycle
unless they properly understand the
importance. Of the people who did make
use of the recycling event, their main
motivators were the convenience of the
event, free recycling and desire to help
the environment. The event was held two
different years, 2009 and 2010. Hosting
easily accessible recycling events like this
is one of the current solutions for the low
recycling rate in the US, however, this
solution will not be effective unless
Delta Institute. E-waste Legislation Map. Digital image. Managing E-Waste. Delta Institute, 2013. Web. 22 May 2015.
Proposed Solution
My primary solution is far simpler than
any government policies or collection
events. It is also more effective and can
solve both the landfill and exportation
related e-waste issues. I propose that we
put more effort into educating the
citizens of America on the importance of
recycling their electronics. Currently
everyone knows that things like bottles
and paper need to be recycled but when
it comes to electronics no one knows
what to do. If people were taught that
things like phones, laptops and monitors
Electronic recycling. Digital image. Incycle Electronics. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 June 2015.
Project Description
In order to implement my proposed
solution at Chanhassen High School I
created four identical posters containing
information about the importance of
proper electronic recycling. These four
posters were spaced around the school
with two on each floor, and one per
grade level's hallway. The posters were
placed in areas that usually have large
numbers of students standing nearby
Problem Statement
In order to protect the health of
the environment and people in countries
that are currently used as e-waste
dumping grounds we need to educate
people on how to handle the disposal of
electronic devices. This education must
inform people on the issues caused by
improper disposal as well as what proper
disposal looks like.
"E-waste: The Environmental Crisis You've Never Heard Of." GreenCitizen. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 03 June 2015.
Driving Question
How can I find and make an attempt to and exportation, while still taking into
implement the best possible solution to
account the views and opinions of all
issues caused by e-waste, such as landfill people involved?
SMART Goal
Before June of 2015 I will implement my system that will inform people of the
best solution in Chanhassen High School current e-waste situation.
in order to make progress towards a
Evaluation
In order to measure the effects of my
posters on the students recycling habits I
made and distributed a survey to 15
students. This survey contained 3
questions Have you seen the 'Recycle
your Electronics' posters in the hall,
Did you have a chance to read what was
on them, and On a scale from 1 to 10
how do you think your future recycling
habits will be affected. Of the 15
students who answered the survey 8 said
that they had not seen the posters in the
hall and the other 7 said that they had.
Of the seven that had seen the posters in
the halls, 5 of the seven said that they
had gotten the opportunity to read the
contents while 2 said that they had not.
For the students who read the contents
there was an average of 6.8 for the
likeliness of impacting future recycling
habits. The 2 students who had seen the
posters but not read the contents
averaged at 5.5. In evaluation of the
Works Cited
Fact Sheet: Management of Electronic Waste in the United States. N.p.: US EPA, n.d. Web. 1 June
2015.
"Where Does E-waste End Up?" Greenpeace International. N.p., 24 Feb. 2009. Web. 01 June 2015.
STEP Initiative. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 June 2015.
Knudsen, Laura. "Electronic Waste." (2015): n. pag. May 2010. Web. 3 June 2015.
Bibliography
"Ghana: Digital Dumping Ground." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 03 June 2015.
"ECycling, Common Wastes & Materials." EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, n.d. Web. 03 June
2015.
"Regulations/Standards | ECycling." EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, n.d. Web. 03 June 2015.
"Following The Trail Of Toxic E-Waste." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, n.d. Web. 03 June 2015.
Strogen, Bret. "E-Waste: When Recycling Is Far Away from Being a Simple Solution." Academia.edu.
N.p., n.d. Web. 03 June 2015.
"Prison Recycling." ElectronicsTakeBackCoalition. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2015.
"'E-waste' Becoming a Pressing Problem." The Spectrum. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 June 2015.
"Electronic Waste." WHO. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 June 2015.
Contact Information
Personal: switalski.cole3@gmail.com (Colton Switalski)
Mentor: alagrange@techdump.org (Amanda LaGrange at Tech Dump)
Organization: (612) 254-9563 (Tech Dump)
http://www.techdump.org/drop-off-location/