Electronic waste (e-waste) has become a larger, more mainstream issue, leading to more interest in refurbish/recycling efforts nationally and globally. In the U.S., electronics comprise about 6% of our nation’s gross domestic product and e-waste makes up almost that much of our solid waste stream, but grows at a rate that is five times faster than the next-closest waste stream here.

The e-waste industry globally was a $6.9 billion market in 2009 and is expected to grow to $21 billion by 2020, according to GBI Research. [http://www.silvanus360.com/blog/global-e-waste-recovery-market-holds-enormus-revenue-potential-and-is-expected-to-reach-2-billion-by-2020/ ] Cities, states, provinces, nations, and other governments around the globe have been enacting e-waste laws and collection solutions at a fast pace, driving much of this fast-growing market. The European Union has been formulating and implementing electronic disposal regulations while the United States recently enacted directives for its federal departments and contractors to require e-waste recovery and recycling.

The e-waste laws we see here in the United States are compelling, but are beginning to pale in comparison with the huge initiatives the Europeans are pushing – and getting.

In January, the European Parliament passed a new expansion of the European Union’s e-waste laws, called Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), first enacted under that name in 2003. The expansion require nearly half (45%) of all electronic goods sold during the three years leading up to 2016 be recycled and for that target to rise to 65% by 2019.

The Consumer Electronic Association reports that there has been 53 percent year-over-year growth in gadget collections and that mobile phone trade-ins are also on the rise. Another report from eRecycling Corps, which specializes in mobile device recycling and re-selling, says that it has handled more than 550,000 device trade-ins in March 2012 alone – a 300 percent increase over what it handled in March of last year.

Both of these reports are extremely encouraging to the e-waste industry and to environmentally-conscious people everywhere. It means more and more electronics are being recycled and re-used rather than being dumped into landfills. In fact, eRecycling Corps says that they’ll be keeping an estimated 6 million devices out of landfills this year through their refurbishing efforts.

Android OS Tablets Disappointed Google

Google basically developed the Android OS (Operating System) with the idea that any company that wanted to use it could, unlike Apple who keeps the OS for their i-line of devices wrapped up for use only with products they manufacture, making it up to them to control the cost of those features which some users felt had gotten a bit out-of-control.

Apparently, Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt has been unhappy with the quality of the tablets coming out using the Android OS. So, it looks as if he is going to show the world what they had expected to see in a tablet- by fall Google will be unveiling a new Android tablet manufactured by Asus.

We live in a digital world where everything is stored electronically. Most of the data is stored on hard drives and many of us keep sensitive information on our computers, backup drives, etc. So what do you do when you’re going to get ride of that old computer or drive?

Just handing over data can be risking a lot. Even if the company you’re handing it to promises to scrub the drive clean first, you can’t be sure they do ñ or that they’re doing it right. Most will, of course, but for a recycler, scrubbing is a costly, time-consuming process. Some less scrupulous resellers will merely delete data the simple way, which leaves it on the hard drive for anyone to find, if they have a little know-how.