E-Recycling Is a New Industry with Old Inequities

Electronics keep getting cheaper and becoming obsolete faster. And of the world’s estimated 53.6 million tons of electronic waste in 2020, only 17.4 percent is appropriately recycled.

But even proper e-recycling has its dangers, exposing workers to toxic metals such as lead and cadmium, as well as toxic chemicals—all of it usually ground into a fine powder that’s easy to melt down for new gadgets, but also easy to inhale or even absorb through skin.

Now, a new development in e-recycling has JPB Senior Fellow Diana Ceballos worried. Read more.