How does E-waste affect the environment 

Our environment has given us several things to rely on, but in recent years we humans have been tarnishing and obstructing its path. 

Nowadays, the consumption of technology has skyrocketed, which inevitably resulted in a lot of E-waste.

E-waste is toxic and if not disposed of correctly, there are chemical leakages which harshly affect soil and water bodies. Not to mention, the air that is contaminated due to the release of dust particles (due to shredding) and toxins. It is possible to develop chronic illnesses and cancer due to these emissions. 

If fine dust particles travel far, animals (and humans) are at high health risks. Since higher value materials are extracted from e wastes using  methods such as desoldering, the surrounding environment is affected by the fumes etc. 

All of this causes irreversible damage. One example of this is an informal recycling hub in Guiyu, China that extracted valuable metals from e-waste which subsequently caused the region to have extremely high lead levels in the air, which were inhaled and then ingested when returned to water and soil. This could’ve caused disproportionate neurological damage to larger animals, wildlife and humans in the area.

Apart from all this, the amount of calcium carbonate in soil has depleted the useful minerals. This reduces the quality of plants and the amount of vitamins and minerals they could’ve provided. The pH of water is drastically changing abnormally because of elements such as cadmium and lead, making it unusable and inhabitable. 

These are just a few of the many consequences faced by improper E-waste disposal. Unless and until we reduce the amount of waste we produce, the planetary ecosystem will collapse instead of flourishing.