Electronic waste, or e-waste, refers to electrical or electronic devices that are no longer used and are thrown away. It is also called waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) or end-of-life electronics. E-waste is one of the fastest-growing types of waste worldwide, because technology changes quickly and more people buy electronic devices. In 2022, about 62 million metric tons of e-waste were created globally, and only 22.3% were properly collected and recycled. By 2030, e-waste is expected to reach 82 million metric tons. Used electronics that are prepared for repair, reuse, resale, recycling, or disposal are also considered e-waste. In some developing countries, improper handling of e-waste can harm people's health and pollute the environment. The increase in electronic product use, due to the Digital Revolution and new technologies like Bitcoin, has created a global e-waste problem. The fast growth of e-waste is caused by frequent new product releases, unnecessary purchases of electronics, short product life cycles, and low recycling rates. Parts of electronic devices, such as CPUs, may contain harmful materials like lead, cadmium, beryllium, or brominated flame retardants. Recycling and disposing of e-waste can pose serious risks to workers and their communities.

Definition

When an electronic product is no longer useful and is thrown away, it becomes electronic trash, or e-waste. As new models of electronic products are created, older ones become outdated and are often discarded. E-waste is produced in large amounts because of a society that uses many products and the fast pace of technological development.

In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) divides e-waste into ten categories. These include electronics that will be reused, resold, repaired, or recycled, as well as materials like copper, steel, and plastic that can be recovered from old devices. The term "waste" refers to materials that are not recycled and are instead thrown away, even if they were part of reuse or recycling processes. Some groups use the terms "e-waste" and "e-scrap" to describe all old electronics, regardless of their condition. Cathode ray tubes (CRTs), which are used in older televisions and computer monitors, are among the hardest types of e-waste to recycle.

Another system, the Partnership on Measuring ICT for Development, classifies e-waste into six categories. Each category includes different types of electronics, which vary in how long they last, their environmental impact, and how they are collected. About 70% of toxic waste in landfills comes from e-waste, even though e-waste makes up only 3% of all waste in landfills.

CRTs contain high amounts of lead and phosphors (a material different from phosphorus), which are needed for the screen to work. The EPA lists discarded CRT monitors as "hazardous household waste," but CRTs that are set aside for testing may be considered valuable materials if they are recycled or sent to be recycled under certain conditions. CRTs are sometimes confused with DLP Rear Projection TVs, which are made of different materials and require different recycling methods.

In the European Union and its member countries, the European Waste Catalogue (EWC) is used to define hazardous e-waste. This system is part of a European law that is adapted into rules for each member state, such as the UK's List of Wastes Directive. The EWC provides a general definition of hazardous e-waste (EWC Code 16 02 13*), and waste operators must follow specific regulations, like the Hazardous Waste Regulations, to determine if waste is harmful. Materials in the waste are also assessed using additional rules to decide if they are hazardous.

Some exporters mix hard-to-recycle, outdated, or broken electronics with working devices to save costs on separation and treatment. Some countries may expand the definition of "waste" electronics to protect their own markets from used devices made elsewhere.

The value of recycling working electronics, such as laptops, desktops, and parts like RAM, can help cover the cost of transporting large amounts of non-working devices, which have little or no value. A 2011 study, "Ghana E-waste Country Assessment," found that of 215,000 tons of electronics imported to Ghana, 30% were new and 70% were used. Of the used items, 15% were not reused and were discarded. This is different from unverified claims that 80% of the electronics in Ghana were burned in unsafe conditions.

Bitcoin, a type of digital currency, creates large amounts of e-waste. As of May 2021, Bitcoin was responsible for about 30.7 metric kilotons of e-waste, an amount similar to that of a small country like Denmark. This has raised questions about whether Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are environmentally sustainable.

Quantity

E-waste is the fastest-growing waste stream in the world. A 2024 study found that about 62 million tons of e-waste are created each year globally. Only 22.3% of this waste is officially recorded as being collected and recycled. The rest is often processed informally in developing countries, which can harm people’s health and the environment. About $62 billion in valuable materials are lost each year because of poor recycling practices.

Rapid technological changes, new inventions, updates in media (like tapes, software, and MP3s), lower prices, and planned obsolescence (designing products to stop working after a short time) have caused a growing amount of e-waste worldwide. Circular solutions that reuse materials are limited, but legal rules, collection systems, and logistics services are needed before technical solutions can be used.

Parts of electronics, such as display units (CRT, LCD, LED monitors), processors (CPU, GPU, or APU chips), memory (DRAM or SRAM), and audio components, have different lifespans. Processors often become outdated because software no longer works with them, making them more likely to become e-waste. Display units are frequently replaced even if they still work, due to changing preferences for new technology in wealthy countries. Modular smartphones, like the Phonebloks concept, could help solve this problem. These phones are more durable and allow users to replace broken parts instead of throwing away the whole device, reducing e-waste. About 50 million tons of e-waste are produced each year. In the United States, 30 million computers are discarded yearly, and 100 million phones are thrown away in Europe each year. Only 15–20% of e-waste is recycled globally, with the rest going to landfills or incinerators.

A 2023 report by UNEP titled Recycling – from e-waste to Resources found that e-waste, including phones and computers, could increase by up to 500% in some countries, like India, over the next decade. The United States is the largest producer of e-waste, throwing away about 3 million tons each year. China produces about 10.1 million tons of e-waste annually, second only to the United States. Despite banning e-waste imports, China remains a major destination for e-waste from developed countries.

E-waste contains both harmful and valuable materials. It includes heavy metals like lead, cadmium, mercury, and nickel, as well as chemicals such as flame retardants and dioxins. These substances can pollute the environment during improper recycling or disposal, harming ecosystems and human health. Up to 60 elements, including copper, aluminum, iron, gold, silver, and palladium, are found in electronics. The concentration of metals in e-waste is often higher than in regular ores. As of 2013, Apple had sold over 796 million iDevices (iPod, iPhone, iPad). Some companies design phones to break easily so people will buy new models. In the United States, about 70% of heavy metals in landfills come from discarded electronics.

There is agreement that the number of discarded electronics is rising, but opinions differ on how serious the risks are compared to other waste types, like car parts. Some believe restricting the trade of used electronics could help, while others say it might make the problem worse. A 2016 study found that Asia had the largest amount of e-waste (18.2 million tons), followed by Europe (12.3 million tons), the Americas (11.3 million tons), Africa (2.2 million tons), and Oceania (0.7 million tons). Oceania had the highest e-waste per person (17.3 kg), but only 6% was collected and recycled. Europe had the highest collection rate (35%), while the Americas and Asia collected 17% and 15%, respectively. Africa generated the least e-waste per person (1.9 kg), but little data is available on its recycling rates.

In 2019, 53.6 million tons of e-waste were created globally, with an average of 7.3 kg per person. This is expected to rise to 74 million tons by 2030. Asia still produces the most e-waste (24.9 million tons), followed by the Americas (13.1 million tons), Europe (12 million tons), and Africa and Oceania (2.9 million tons and 0.7 million tons, respectively). Europe had the highest e-waste per person (16.2 kg), followed by Oceania (16.1 kg), and then the Americas. Africa had the lowest per-person generation (2.5 kg). Europe recycled 42.5% of its e-waste, while Asia recycled 11.7%. The Americas and Oceania recycled 9.4% and 8.8%, respectively, and Africa recycled only 0.9%. Only 9.3% of the 53.6 million tons of global e-waste was officially collected and recycled, with the fate of 44.3% unknown.

In 2021, about 57.4 million tons of e-waste were created worldwide. In Europe, where e-waste is studied most, 11 out of 72 electronic items in an average household are broken or not used. Each person in Europe also stores about 4–5 kg of unused electrical or electronic products at home annually.

Global trade issues

One idea is that stricter rules about handling electronic waste and worries about harm to the environment in poorer countries make it less expensive to send old electronics abroad without cleaning them first. People who oppose the trade in used electronics say it is still too simple for people who claim to be recyclers to send unsorted electronic waste to developing countries, such as China, India, and parts of Africa. This avoids the cost of removing harmful parts, like old computer screens, which are hard and expensive to process. These countries have become places where large amounts of electronic waste are dumped. Some of these countries try to fix and reuse old equipment, but in 2003, about 90% of electronic waste still ended up in landfills there. Supporters of international trade point to successful fair trade programs in other industries, where working together has created jobs and brought affordable technology to countries where repairing and reusing old items is more common.

People who support the trade in used electronics say that mining for metals in new places has moved to developing countries. Recycling metals like copper, silver, and gold from old electronics is better for the environment than mining new materials. They also say that fixing and reusing computers and televisions has become a skill that is less common in wealthier nations, and that repairing old items has helped development in the past.

South Korea, Taiwan, and southern China have found ways to keep value in used goods and have created large industries around repairing old items, such as ink cartridges, cameras, and working computer screens. Repairing and reusing old items has sometimes caused problems for companies that make new products, and some people criticize the trade because of this. Books like The Waste Makers by Vance Packard explain some of these criticisms, such as rules that stop working computers from being sent to China or Japan.

People who oppose sending used electronics to other countries say that lower environmental and labor standards, cheap labor, and the high value of materials from old electronics lead to pollution, such as from melting copper wire. Electronic waste is often sent to countries in Africa and Asia, like China, Malaysia, India, and Kenya, sometimes without following the law. Many old computers are sent to these countries as places to throw away electronic waste.

The Basel Convention was created in March 1989 and is a major international agreement that tries to control the movement of dangerous waste to protect countries that receive it. The United States has not agreed to the Basel Convention or its Ban Amendment, so it has few laws stopping the export of harmful waste. Groups like the Basel Action Network say that about 80% of electronic waste sent to recycling centers in the U.S. is not recycled there but instead sent to countries like China. This number is disputed by the EPA, the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, and the World Reuse, Repair and Recycling Association.

A study by Arizona State University found that 87–88% of used computers imported were sold for more than the value of the materials they contained. This suggests that the trade in used computers is mainly about reusing them, not recycling.

Basel Convention Obstacles

The Basel Convention and Ban Amendment face challenges in how countries manage waste. Many countries do not report their waste activities because they have not signed the Basel Convention or rely on informal methods, such as unorganized recycling, which are common in low- and middle-income countries. According to a 2024 report by the United Nations Environment Programme, 27 countries did not submit required reports from 2018 to 2022 about their progress with the Basel Convention. These countries included Belize, Cambodia, Chile, Djibouti, Dominica, Somalia, Tonga, Mauritius, Nepal, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Cameroon, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Liechtenstein, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Samoa, Republic of Korea, Uruguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Zambia.

Some reports and laws use unclear language, making it hard to define what counts as illegal waste trade. For example, e-waste may be sent abroad as "used materials," which creates loopholes in the rules. The Basel Convention also places the responsibility for monitoring waste and punishing violations on individual countries. At the 2024 meeting, 66 countries said they would take back hazardous waste, and 52 countries treated illegal waste trade as a crime. While these numbers include all hazardous waste, e-waste is part of these statistics. These challenges allow low- and middle-income countries to receive large amounts of e-waste, which can harm people’s health.

Some people argue that trade in used electronics helps poorer countries by providing jobs and affordable technology. For example, even though Haiti is poor and close to the U.S., more e-waste is sent to Asia than to Haiti. Many people in developing countries work in repairing or recycling electronics, which are declining industries in wealthier nations. A reporter named Adam Minter wrote that some of these activities are sustainable.

However, opponents say that methods used in developing countries are harmful. One common method is burning electronics to melt plastics and remove metals, which releases dangerous chemicals like dioxins and furans into the air. These chemicals can cause cancer and harm the environment. In 2008, Greenpeace stopped a shipment of e-waste from the U.S. to China, highlighting concerns about e-waste exports in countries like India, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, and Nigeria.

A study by the European Commission found that only 35% of e-waste in Europe was properly collected or recycled in 2012. The remaining 65% was either sent abroad, recycled in unsafe ways, scavenged for parts, or thrown away.

Guiyu, a town in China, is known as the "e-waste capital of the world." It started as a farming area but became a major e-waste recycling center by the 1990s. Thousands of workers there dismantle electronics, burn parts, and extract metals. This has caused pollution in the air, water, and soil, as well as health problems for workers and nearby communities. Greenpeace found high levels of toxic metals like lead and mercury in Guiyu. Similar e-waste processing sites exist in Nigeria, Ghana, and India.

Bitcoin mining also creates e-waste. Each Bitcoin transaction produces about 272 grams of waste, and in 2020, Bitcoin mining alone created over 112 million grams of waste. This is more than the waste produced by major financial companies like VISA. The fast pace of technological change in Bitcoin mining, driven by a system called "proof-of-work," leads to frequent upgrades of computer equipment, increasing e-waste.

According to Koomey’s Law, computer efficiency improves rapidly, but this also means that older technology becomes obsolete quickly, contributing to more e-waste.

Environmental impact

The process of taking apart and throwing away old electronics in developing countries has caused several environmental problems. Chemicals and gases from this process can enter water, soil, air, and even food. These harmful substances can then affect animals, plants, and people who drink water or eat food grown in contaminated areas.

A study in Guiyu, China found that:
– Airborne dioxins were found at 100 times the levels measured before.
– Levels of harmful chemicals in duck ponds and rice fields were higher than international safety standards. Heavy metals like cadmium, copper, nickel, and lead in rice fields also exceeded these standards.
– Heavy metals in road dust included lead levels over 300 times higher than in a control village and copper levels over 100 times higher.

In Agbogbloshie, Ghana, where about 40,000 people live, e-waste contamination affects nearly all residents. This area, one of the largest informal e-waste processing sites in Africa, receives about 215,000 tons of used electronics each year, mostly from Western Europe. Because homes, businesses, and industries are closely mixed here, Agbogbloshie has been ranked as one of the world’s 10 worst toxic threats. Improper disposal of e-waste releases harmful chemicals into soil, water, and air, allowing these pollutants to spread through the environment and increase the risk of harm to both people and nature.

A study in Agbogbloshie found lead levels in soil as high as 18,125 parts per million (ppm). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets a standard of 400 ppm for lead in soil in play areas and 1200 ppm for non-play areas. Workers at the site often burn electronic parts and wires to recover copper, releasing toxic chemicals like lead, dioxins, and furans into the environment.

Researchers like Brett Robinson, a professor at Lincoln University in New Zealand, warn that wind patterns in Southeast China spread toxic particles from open-air burning across the Pearl River Delta, a region home to 45 million people. These chemicals enter the "soil-crop-food pathway," a major way people are exposed to heavy metals. These chemicals do not break down naturally and remain in the environment for long periods, increasing the risk of harm.

In Chachoengsao, an area east of Bangkok, villagers lost their main water source due to e-waste dumping. In late 2017, a nearby Chinese-run factory began recycling e-waste, such as broken computers and cables, to extract valuable metals like copper, silver, and gold. However, these items also contain highly toxic substances like lead, cadmium, and mercury. A local resident reported feeling unwell from fumes during processing and claimed the factory contaminated her water. Tests by environmental groups and the local government found high levels of toxic metals, including iron, manganese, lead, nickel, and in some cases, arsenic and cadmium. People who used water from shallow wells reported skin diseases or foul smells.

The chemical makeup of e-waste depends on the age and type of the discarded item. Most e-waste contains metals like copper, aluminum, and iron, which may be mixed with plastics or ceramics. Proper disposal of e-waste in R2 certified recycling facilities is important to reduce environmental harm.

Information security

Old computers and devices that are no longer used may still have data that was not fully removed. This data might include private or important information from the person who used the device before. Simply deleting the data or resetting the device to its original settings may not completely erase the information. This means that someone with bad intentions could find and use the data, which might lead to a data breach.

A proper plan for recycling these devices can help protect information. This plan should include steps like formatting the storage space again, filling it with random numbers to make the data impossible to recover, or physically destroying the storage device, such as by shredding it. For example, when a file is deleted on a computer, the actual data might still remain on the storage device, and it could be found again using regular methods.

Recycling

Recycling helps reduce harmful materials from entering the environment and prevents the loss of natural resources. Local governments and communities must promote recycling through education. Less than 20% of electronic waste is properly recycled, with most ending up in landfills or being recycled in unsafe ways, especially in developing countries. This process often exposes workers to dangerous substances like mercury, lead, and cadmium. Despite the value of materials in e-waste, very little is officially recycled, leading to wasted resources.

There are three main methods to recover valuable metals from electronics: hydrometallurgical, pyrometallurgical, and hydro-pyrometallurgical. Each method has its own benefits and drawbacks, and all produce harmful waste.

A major challenge is recycling printed circuit boards from electronics. These boards contain valuable metals like gold, silver, and copper, as well as other materials. One way to process e-waste is by melting circuit boards, burning cables to recover copper, or using acid to separate valuable metals. Traditional methods involve shredding and separating materials, but these are not very efficient. New methods, such as cryogenic decomposition, are being studied. In 2023, a new material called AF aerogel made from protein fibrils was developed to help extract gold from circuit boards.

Proper disposal or reuse of electronics can help avoid health problems, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and create jobs.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encourages certified recyclers to follow strict safety standards. Two certifications, Responsible Recyclers Practices (R2) and E-Stewards, are endorsed by the EPA. These programs ensure that recyclers meet high environmental standards, safely manage materials, and protect human health. Certified recyclers are regularly checked to confirm they continue meeting these standards.

Some U.S. retailers allow consumers to recycle old electronics. The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) provides a recycling locator to help people find certified recycling programs. Research shows that 58% of consumers know where to recycle electronics, and the industry hopes to increase this number. Over 5,000 recycling locations across the U.S. are operated by manufacturers and retailers, with a goal to recycle one billion pounds of electronics annually by 2016.

The Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) Electronic Challenge, started by the EPA in 2012, involves electronics manufacturers and retailers. These companies collect old electronics and send them to certified recyclers. They can then report that their recycling efforts are fully responsible. The Electronics TakeBack Coalition (ETBC) works to protect health and the environment by encouraging manufacturers to take responsibility for recycling electronics. It also provides lists of certified recyclers and recommendations for safe recycling practices.

While increased recycling has helped recover valuable materials and reduce waste, challenges remain, such as ensuring recycling standards are followed and managing waste that has value. Experts agree that better accountability and efficiency are needed to improve recycling systems. The growing amount of e-waste is seen as an opportunity to create better recycling systems.

The Certified Electronics Recycler program sets strict standards for managing electronics, focusing on quality, environmental safety, and health. The Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition works to address health and environmental issues caused by toxins in technology. The World Reuse, Repair, and Recycling Association (wr3a.org) aims to improve recycling standards in countries that import used electronics. Take Back My TV, a project by the ETBC, evaluates television manufacturers based on their responsibility in recycling.

Efforts have been made to raise awareness about unsafe conditions in prisons where e-waste is dismantled. A report by the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition and other groups found that prisoners are often exposed to harmful substances due to poor safety standards in prisons.

In Argentina, a group called Argentina's Cyber Dumpster Divers collects e-waste and repurposes it into useful items like cameras and video game consoles. This work became especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In many developed countries, e-waste is first broken down into parts for processing.

Financial incentives for electronic waste recycling

Governments and organizations use financial rewards to encourage proper collection, recycling, and disposal of electronic waste (e-waste). These methods aim to reduce unregulated recycling, recover valuable materials, and support safe waste management. E-waste contains valuable metals like gold, silver, and copper, often found in higher amounts than in natural ores. Reports show that only 22.3% of e-waste was officially collected and recycled globally in 2022.

Deposit–refund systems (DRS) require buyers to pay an extra fee when purchasing electronics. This fee is returned when the device is returned at the end of its life. Studies show these systems can increase return rates compared to no incentives. However, their success depends on the type of waste. For example, deposit systems for portable batteries have had limited success in improving collection rates.

Some governments give money to certified recyclers through subsidies, grants, or tax breaks to support official e-waste recycling. Research in Taiwan shows that combining financial rewards with public education improves recycling results and reduces reliance on unregulated recycling. Additional studies show that subsidies can improve the efficiency of formal e-waste recycling systems.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) means that companies are responsible for managing their products at the end of their life. International reviews show that EPR helps shift waste management costs from governments to manufacturers and encourages better product design and take-back systems. In the European Union, EPR is managed through the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive, which requires companies to fund the collection, treatment, and recycling of electronics.

Investing in e-waste treatment infrastructure, such as certified dismantling plants and collection systems, improves official recycling rates. Areas with strong infrastructure rely less on unregulated recycling, reducing environmental and health risks from unsafe processing.

In the European Union, the WEEE Directive enforces EPR and sets rules for collecting, reusing, and recycling e-waste. However, reviews show differences in how well member states follow these rules and challenges in meeting recycling targets.

In the United States, e-waste policies are mostly decided at the state level. Some states use producer-funded take-back systems or organize collection events and offer rebates or vouchers to encourage recycling.

Countries like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan use complete EPR systems or deposit–refund programs to reduce unregulated recycling and improve material recovery. Studies show that official, regulated take-back systems collect more e-waste than unregulated methods.

Financial rewards can increase participation in official e-waste collection and reduce harm from unregulated recycling. However, challenges remain: rules are not always followed, infrastructure may be poor or uneven, and some e-waste still avoids formal systems.

Proper e-waste recycling helps recover valuable materials like metals and rare earth elements, reduces the need to extract new resources, creates jobs, and supports circular economy goals. Recycling turns old electronics into useful resources, helping manage materials sustainably and reducing the environmental impact of electronics use.

Repair as waste reduction method

There are several ways to reduce the harm caused by recycling electronic waste. One major problem is that many electronic devices stop working quickly. Two main reasons cause this issue. First, people often want cheap products, which can lead to lower quality and shorter lifetimes for devices. Second, some companies encourage people to upgrade their devices regularly. They might do this by limiting access to spare parts, repair guides, or software updates, or by designing products to stop working after a short time.

Because of these problems, more people are trying to repair broken electronics. Repair efforts often happen in communities, such as through repair cafés or events called "restart parties" organized by the Restart Project.

The "right to repair" movement is led by farmers in the United States who struggle to fix their high-tech farming equipment because they cannot get repair information, tools, or parts. However, this movement also includes other groups, such as those who criticize companies like Apple for making it hard to repair devices. Companies often argue that allowing repairs without their approval could cause safety issues.

One simple way to reduce electronic waste is to sell or donate old devices instead of throwing them away. Improper disposal of e-waste is becoming more dangerous as the amount of waste increases. Because of this, companies like Apple and Samsung now offer recycling programs for old electronics. Recycling helps reuse valuable parts inside devices, which can save energy and reduce the need to mine new materials or make new parts. Many areas have local recycling programs that can be found online by searching for "recycle electronics" along with the city or region name.

Cloud services help store data online, making it possible to access information from anywhere without needing physical storage devices. Cloud storage also provides large amounts of space at a low cost. This reduces the need to create new storage devices, which helps lower the amount of electronic waste produced.

Electronic waste classification

The market offers many types of electrical products. To organize these items, it is important to group them into clear and useful categories. These categories can help decide the best way to dispose of the products. Creating these groups helps explain what e-waste is. However, these groups do not provide specific information about when products are not harmful to the environment. At the same time, the groups should not be too general because different countries may interpret them differently. The UNU-KEYs system uses the harmonized statistical (HS) coding, which is an international system that helps classify items in a standard way for customs purposes.

Electronic waste substances

Some parts of computers can be used again when making new computer products. Other parts are broken down into metals that can be used in different ways, such as in building structures, making utensils, and creating jewelry. Materials found in large amounts include epoxy resins, fiberglass, PCBs, PVC (polyvinyl chlorides), thermosetting plastics, lead, tin, copper, silicon, beryllium, carbon, iron, and aluminum. Materials found in small amounts include cadmium, mercury, and thallium. Materials found in very small amounts include americium, antimony, arsenic, barium, bismuth, boron, cobalt, europium, gallium, germanium, gold, indium, lithium, manganese, nickel, niobium, palladium, platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, selenium, silver, tantalum, terbium, thorium, titanium, vanadium, and yttrium. Common uses for these materials include:

Human health and safety

People who live near e-waste recycling sites may be exposed to pollution even if they are not directly involved in recycling. This happens because they can come into contact with polluted air, water, soil, dust, and food. There are three main ways people are exposed: breathing in polluted air, eating contaminated food or water, and touching polluted materials.

Studies show that people near e-waste recycling sites often have higher levels of heavy metals in their bodies. Children and pregnant women are especially at risk. Health problems linked to e-waste exposure include mental health issues, trouble thinking clearly, and physical health problems. DNA damage is more common in people exposed to e-waste than in those who are not. This damage can lead to mutations and increase the risk of cancer. Workers who handle e-waste directly, such as by burning or breaking apart electronics, are at the highest risk because they are exposed to dangerous chemicals.

Pregnant women who live near e-waste sites may pass harmful chemicals to their babies. In Guiyu, a major e-waste recycling area in China, studies found that babies born to parents who worked with e-waste had higher levels of lead in their blood. This was linked to how long the mothers lived in Guiyu or worked in e-waste recycling during pregnancy. Babies in Guiyu also had higher levels of a protein called metallothionein, which shows exposure to toxic metals like cadmium. High levels of another chemical, PFOA, in mothers were linked to slower growth in their babies.

Exposure to e-waste during pregnancy can lead to problems such as stillbirth, low birth weight, and lower scores for newborn health. These effects can also cause long-term issues like learning and behavior problems later in life.

Children are more likely to be harmed by e-waste because of their small size, fast metabolism, and frequent hand-to-mouth contact. Studies show children in e-waste areas face about 8 times more health risks than adult workers. For example, children in Guiyu had blood lead levels nearly 1.5 times higher than those in areas without e-waste. The U.S. sets a safety level for blood lead at 5 micrograms per deciliter, but levels in Guiyu were much higher. Children whose parents worked with circuit boards had the highest lead levels, while those who recycled plastic had the lowest.

Exposure to harmful chemicals in e-waste, such as lead, mercury, and others, can harm children’s development. This may lead to lower intelligence, learning problems, and health issues like lung problems, hearing loss, and weaker immune responses. For example, boys aged 8–9 near e-waste sites had lower lung function and changes in body chemistry linked to nickel exposure.

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) lists dangers for e-recycling workers, such as injuries from crushing objects, exposure to toxic chemicals, and contact with harmful metals like lead and mercury. These chemicals have set safety limits for workers in the U.S.

Informal e-recycling refers to small, unregulated workshops with little safety equipment. Formal e-recycling uses machines and follows safety rules to protect workers. Studies in China found workers in formal facilities had lower health risks than those in informal sites like Guiyu. Informal workers often use unsafe methods like burning e-waste to recover metals, which releases dangerous fumes. Children in these areas may also help with recycling, increasing their exposure. Workers in informal settings rarely use gloves, masks, or ventilation.

In India, studies found workers in formal recycling facilities had higher levels of some metals than those in informal slum areas. However, workers in slums had higher levels of other harmful chemicals.

Even in formal recycling, workers may face risks. Studies in France and Sweden found workers had higher exposure to metals like lead and mercury than safety guidelines allow. They were also exposed to chemicals like flame retardants and dioxins.

Much of the informal e-recycling happens in low-income or developing countries. A 2025 report by Transparency International highlighted this trend.

E-waste legislative frameworks

The European Union (EU) has created two main rules to help manage electronic waste. The first rule, called the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE Directive), started in 2003. Its goal was to help member countries recycle and reuse electronic waste. This rule was updated in 2008 and fully used in 2014. The second rule, the Directive on the restriction of certain dangerous materials in electrical and electronic equipment, was also created in 2003 and updated in 2012.

In Western Balkan countries, North Macedonia passed a law about batteries and accumulators in 2010 and another about managing electronic waste in 2012. Serbia created a national waste management plan from 2010 to 2019 to handle special waste, including electronic waste. Montenegro made a law in 2010 aiming to collect 4 kilograms of electronic waste per person each year by 2020. Albania has a draft law from 2011 focusing on the design of electronic equipment. However, Bosnia and Herzegovina does not yet have a law to manage electronic waste.

In Asia, Thailand banned importing electronic waste in 2020, and China did the same in 2018. These rules have had some success, but some people have found ways to avoid them.

As of 2024, 81 countries worldwide have created policies or laws to manage electronic waste. However, many of these rules are not legally binding in regions like Asia and Africa. This makes it hard for some countries to manage electronic waste properly. For example, EU research shows that laws against electronic waste have led to more exports of this waste.

Solving the E-waste Problem is a group part of the United Nations University. It works with companies, governments, and other organizations to find solutions for electronic waste. It brings together all groups involved in electronic waste to create better, science-based plans.

The European Commission (EC) of the EU defines electronic waste as items from electrical devices, like refrigerators, televisions, and phones. In 2005, the EU estimated 9 million tons of electronic waste. By 2020, this number grew to 12 million tons. If not handled correctly, electronic waste can harm the environment and cause health problems. Managing this waste requires proper facilities and resources like aluminum, gold, copper, and silicon.

The EU has two main rules to manage electronic waste: the WEEE Directive and the RoHS Directive. The WEEE Directive started in 2003 to help recycle electronic waste. It was updated in 2008 and again in 2012, becoming fully active in 2014. In 2017, the EU created new rules to track the amount of electronic waste each country produces.

The RoHS Directive, from 2003, limits the use of dangerous materials like lead and mercury in electronic equipment. It was updated in 2008 and again in 2013. In 2017, the EU made changes to this rule to improve safety.

Each year, the EU deals with about 800,000 tons of batteries from the automotive industry, 190,000 tons of industrial batteries, and 160,000 tons of consumer batteries. These batteries are used in many daily items. If not collected and recycled properly, they can release harmful materials into the environment. The EU has created the Batteries Directive to improve battery recycling and reduce harm. This rule also limits the use of dangerous materials in batteries and ensures they are labeled as safe. A new rule was proposed in 2020 to make sure batteries sold in the EU are recyclable and safe.

The EU’s Batteries Directive was first created in 2006 and updated in 2013. It helps manage battery waste and ensures safe recycling. A review of this rule can be found in an official report.

Potential Future Recommendations

To improve policies and actions that reduce e-waste and its effects, several steps can be taken. Teaching the public about the dangers e-waste poses to the environment and human health can help people reduce their own e-waste. This may also involve electronic companies, as raising awareness could encourage the creation of longer-lasting, more sustainable technologies. Education efforts should also reach people who work in informal e-waste recycling to inform them about health risks they may face from their work.

Using clearer terms for used and waste materials could help fix problems in rules like the Basel Convention and Ban Amendment.

Governments and businesses can support formal recycling programs to protect workers’ health while ensuring they can still earn a living. This is especially important in low-income countries, such as Ghana, where many people rely on informal recycling to support their families. It is also important to ensure that low-income areas receive equal access to waste management improvements.

To reduce the health risks linked to e-waste and its recycling, medical programs and resources should be improved or created in areas where people are heavily exposed to e-waste pollution.