What You Should Know About E-Waste Disposal

Electronics make our lives easier and have become pervasive in the 21st century. Prices have fallen to a level where many devices are considered nearly 'disposable' as they are frequently upgraded.

Electronic Waste, or e-waste, is everything from televisions to cell phones, laptop computers to hard drives.According to the EPA, of the 1,440,000 tons of e-waste generated in 2010, only 649,000 tons was recycled, or only 27%. Where does the rest go? A staggering 1,790,000 tons winds up in landfills in far off places like China, India and Africa. Barges loaded with tons of your discarded gadgets are dumped in many developing countries with loose environmental regulations.

An entire industry has grown up around picking through these mountains of electronic junk to collect metals, parts, and other recyclable materials. The health effects to the people who struggle to make a living doing this, and the consequences to the local environment is huge.

The city of Guiyu, China was once a rice farming village. It now is a major e-waste dumping ground and the local pollution has rendered the area unable to produce crops and poisoned the drinking water. According to Wikipedia:

"Many of the primitive recycling operations in Guiyu are toxic and dangerous to workers' health with 88% of children suffering from lead poisoning. Higher-than-average rates of miscarriage are also reported in the region. Workers use their bare hands to crack open electronics to strip away any parts that can be reused- including chips, or valuable metals such as gold, silver, etc. Workers also "cook" circuit boards to remove chips and solders, burn wires and other plastics to liberate metals such as copper; use highly corrosive and dangerous acid baths along the riverbanks to extract gold from the microchips; and sweep printer toner out of cartridges. 

Children are exposed to the dioxin-laden ash as the smoke billows around Guiyu, and finally settles on the area. The soil has been saturated with lead, chromium, tin, and other heavy metals. Discarded electronics lie in pools of toxins that leach into the groundwater, making it so polluted that the water is undrinkable. To remedy this, water must be trucked in from elsewhere."

Aside from the environmental impacts, a huge amount of personal data remains on these devices and can be retrieved and sold on the black market. In fact, your old hard drive could be worth as much as $200 USD to criminal organizations which use the information for identity theft, fraud and blackmail.

According to David Brown, manager of Tech Guys in California, most people don't consider what happens to their data after the computer becomes obsolete. "We remove confidential information from donated machines every day," he said. (see Discarded Computers Reveal Your Secrets 10/03/2011)

Cities like Guiyu exist all over the developing world. They are slowly poisoning the environment and the people who live there while providing rich picking for identity thieves. What can you do to make sure your old electronics are disposed of safely?

Be sure to donate your old equipment to a reputable e-waste recycling company which has been certified through the EPA. Ask for your old hard drive back when you upgrade or remove it from the machine before you donate. You can wipe your hard drives' data using a powerful and free program like 'Darik's Boot and Nuke', (DBAN http://www.dban.org/).

In the Butte County, California, area your choices for certified e-waste disposal include 'All Green Recycling' at 800-780-0347 and 'Computers for Classrooms' at 530-895-4175 or you can search for e-waste recycling for more options.

Discarded Computers Reveal Your Secrets

Article first published as Discarded Computers Reveal Your Secrets on Technorati.

Your old computer's hard drive is worth hundreds of dollars to criminals seeking your personal and financial information.

Discarded hard drives often contain valuable data, including credit card and banking information, medical records and passwords. The data is being harvested for identity theft, fraud and even blackmail.

Old computer parts, including hard drives with data intact, are shipped overseas and dumped in cash-strapped developing  countries with lenient or non-existent environmental laws.

Criminal organizations will pay up to $200 USD for old disks with data intact from workers who scour landfills brimming with dumped e waste from the US and other prosperous countries.

According to David Brown, manager of Tech Guys Computer Service in California, most people don't consider what happens to their data after the computer becomes obsolete. "We remove confidential information from donated machines every day," he said.

How can you be sure your private information is safe when you retire your old computer?

If you plan to donate the computer intact you should use a wiping program like the free 'Dariks Boot And Nuke'. DBAN is a Linux based system which boots off a floppy, cd or usb. It overwrites the old bits and bytes with random numbers several times over, assuring complete destruction of data.

If you don't plan to reuse the computer, pull out the hard drive (its usually just two screws) and physically destroy it. Perhaps the easiest way is to beat it with a hammer, or even a rock. You can drive a few nails through it for extra satisfaction.

Always ask for your old hard drive back when you take your computer to the shop for an upgrade. Donate your used machine to a reputable e-recycling shop which has earned a certification through the EPA for safely recycling and managing used electronics.

You can find a list of companies who have received this EPA approval by visiting the websites of 'R2 Solutions' or 'e-stewards'.

Protecting your personal information involves more than just using an anti-virus program and choosing secure passwords. You need to ensure it is safe from prying eyes even after the computer has been retired and has passed out of your control.