Reciclagem de Eletroeletrônicos - E-Lixo

Electrical and electronic devices. We hear that name and think of the obvious ones. Computer, fridge, TV, microwave, but there are many others we use every day.

And, as we know, they suddenly stop working. And little by little, all of those things end up being all trash. So, what do we do?

Blender. Radio. TV.

Iron. Fly zapper. But what does it mean EEE after all?

Easy. Does it have electric circuits? Do you plug it in?

It needs batteries? That's it! Now we'll learn how to dispose EEEs, also known as e-waste.

PRESENTS THE WASTE PATH How is it going, Alex? -Great. -What's up?

What is e-waste? It's commonly known as electronic devices that's not being used because it's broken or old, that is, it's waste to be disposed and recycled. Look, let's see if we've learned something.

-What's up, guys? -What's up? Do you have the devices I asked you?

Here they are. Let's see. Electronic device.

There's a cellphone. EEE. A massager!

Another cellphone. I think it still works. People buy new phones and get rid of their old ones, making more electronic waste.

Wires, cables, earbuds. All of this is electronic material. If it's powered by batteries, if it needs an power plug, then it is an EEE.

But why is it so important to dispose it and do it correctly? Let's check it out? Brazil is the 2nd biggest e-waste producer in the Americas.

We only recycle 2% of our electronic waste. 2% is very little. For every box like this one, the equivalent of 49 of those full of EEEs is wasted.

Out in the world. Basically, that happens because we're not used to dispose it correctly. 98% of those electronic are missing.

Where do you think they are? EEEs can't be disposed with the regular waste. I can't take this.

And you can't leave it anywhere. Lead, copper, silver, mercury, zinc, chromium, all of that. If it's not disposed correctly, it can act like poison.

It contaminates the ground, the water, the water tables. But if you do it the right way and dispose it like we are showing you. .

. All of that is turned into raw material and becomes something completely new. Hi, profesor.

-How's it going? -Well, I'm good. -Let's talk about EEEs?

-Let's do it. Let's go. Why is it so important to dispose EEEs correctly?

Thaíde, that's very important for our own existence. In order to really understand the issue we need to take a look at the chemical elements, and understand which ones cause problems, ok? There are 118 chemical elements in the periodic table, which around 92 of them are elements that you find in nature.

And out those 92 elements, 26 are essential to life. The ones that aren't very effective were left aside. It's almost like a Darwinian natural selection between the chemical elements.

The elements that are in the electronic devices are the ones the nature rejected. They are toxic. What are rare-earth elements?

Rare-earth elements are represented by 14 chemical elements that weren't very important until recently, except for the TV. They were luminescent agents in the TV. Nowadays, these elements are mostly present in cellphones.

E-waste is not trash, it's a source of resources. To give you an idea, in a ton of cellphone waste, which is not much, you can extract more than 300 grams of gold, and 140 grams of palladium. -In a ton?

-In a ton. And also, it pollutes nature because it's thrown away and ends up on the ground, and comes back to us through food. Recycling these materials could reduce the mining industry?

It would be highly beneficial. Because we all know mining cause problems, it pollutes and, sometimes, catastrophic. Therefore, gold, palladium, platinum, rhodium, are elements that need to be treated a little bit more carefully, using more technology, so, they can be recycled, if possible, or extract that element in a smart way.

That's what is missing. Recycling redeems the properties and reduces the influence of the material in the environment. And we make a sustainable future for our children, grandchildren and descendants.

Therefore, recycling is important. I still can't believe the percentage of electronics that are recycled in Brazil. Mind you that we only recycle a portion of those devices.

The electronic waste recycling process is expensive and complicated. For each type of device there are hundreds of components, millions of connections, thousands of materials. It's a combination of many plastics, bearings, processors, hard drives, circuit boards with heavy metals.

It's so, so expensive, that Brazil doesn't have an electronic board recycling plant. We have to send those parts to Europe and Asia. That is, Brazil exports electronic waste, but only a small amount of what we use.

Only 2%. There are a lot of local facilities where we can take our e-waste, but, unfortunately, most people don't know about them. We need to change that.

Join me? Technology is more and more present each day, right? How long have you not looked at your phone?

You're probably watching this video on it right now. It's produced, used, disposed. But it would be, I mean, it should be produced, used, recycled and reused.

We work, and work, and work, just so we can buy, let's say, a refrigerator. A nice, big one. We work hard for it, save money and then buy it.

Look at that. Then the years go by and that item that we worked so hard for, that we took care of, gets dumped all of a sudden, without consideration. Come on, people, really?

You can't do that! And what can we do with this used item? Look, this can't keep happening.

How long will those 98% of electronic waste still end up on soil and water, causing health problems for the environment and for us, be wasted, meanwhile we keep extracting more from nature? Tell me. And how many of those electronics aren't recycled and could still be used, but they were replaced by newer electronic devices?

We need to act on this right now. But, can we fix this? Of course, we can, my friends.

Changing this situation is easy. You have to bring your electronic waste to the collection spots, that are all around town. Easy, right?

Check out how to find the address closest to you. Besides these collection places, there are other options that make our life easier. Check this out.

You can go straight to a certified recycler. How does the selection works? We start with a pre-selection according to the disassembly, that is, each device is taken apart differently.

Then the material goes to the production line. There are a lot of types of devices here. Different technologies, you know?

People usually associate electronic waste with computers and cellphones only, but a hair dryer is electronic waste too, blenders, sandwich makers. Are batteries also considered as e-waste? -No, no.

-So, am I wrong? Indeed. That's another type of waste.

Electronic devices are the ones that need electricity to work, including batteries. After taking them apart, I get some parts and pieces left. For example, iron.

I sell that to a company that wants to recycle iron. Same things with copper, aluminum, plastic. It's a win-win situation.

Specially for the planet. For the planet and for us, who live on it. And there's one more option.

Stay tuned because it's a great tip! You can also return your device to the company or at the store where you bought it. In theory, right?

Unfortunately, not every store takes it back yet, but this needs to change. I'm going to tell you why and what is our responsibility. After they were disposed correctly, the devices go to companies that does reverse logistics, such as GM&C, and we're going to see it now and learn a little more about it.

Danilo, how are you? -Good, and you? -What's up?

I'm fine, thank God. What is reverse logistics? Reverse logistics means returning your old electronic device to industries that transform them and turn it into raw material again.

Why is it important? Producers are obligated to do that. The National Solid Waste Policy obliges producers to have locations where people can dispose their electronic devices, to avoid contamination of the environment.

There is a law to enforce that, right? Exactly. But not only for producers.

We, the consumers, need to know about that too to dispose the material correctly. Where does this material come from? Thaíde, we are responsible for over 400 collection locations nationwide, and we get around 450 tons, of electronic devices -por month.

-450? -It's a lot of devices, isn't it? -It's a lot.

That represents less than 2% of what our clients put in the market. -2%? -2%.

We've already talked about the 98% thing, didn't we? This was made with recycled material that you got here? 100% recycled material and its quality is certified.

-It's like a virgin material. -It is. This is made out of a phone.

Or an old printer. Or a credit card terminal. This means your old device is going to become something else.

It moves the economy, creates jobs. Just dispose it in the right place. Easy, right?

No more excuses now. We know how to dispose our devices now. With everyone doing their share we can make a better world.

Dispose things correctly. Demand it from companies. Rethink about how you use your devices and keep in mind: the future is in our hands.