Most of the items discarded are smaller like toys (Picture: Fondation Carmignac / SWNS)
Around 62 million tons of electronics were binned in 2022 – but less than a quarter were properly recycled.
A new report revealed that the tonnage of e-waste created in 2022 could fill enough trucks to form a bumper-to-bumper line around the equator or to form an unbroken queue that’s almost 5,000 miles long.
The UN’s fourth Global E-waste Monitor has revealed rapidly increasing amounts of e-waste which is rising five times faster than documented recycling, with a huge chunk of trashed tech ending up in landfill.
A majority of the items were toys, microwave ovens, vacuum cleaners, and e-cigarettes.
E-waste is defined as any discarded product with a plug or battery and is regarded as a health and environmental hazard. They can harbour toxic additives or hazardous substances like mercury which can damage the human brain and coordination system.
Since 2010 the number of devices binned has shot up by 82%, with predictions that it will have risen by a further 32% in 2030.
Worldwide, the annual generation of e-waste is rising by 2.6 million tonnes annually, on track to reach 82 million tonnes by 2030, a further 33% increase from the 2022 figure.
Around 62 million tons of electronics were binned in 2022 (Picture: Getty /iStockphoto)
Dr Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava from ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau said: ‘From discarded televisions to dumped telephones, an enormous amount of e-waste is generated around the world.
‘The latest research shows that the global challenge posed by e-waste is only going to grow.
‘With less than half of the world implementing and enforcing approaches to manage the problem, this raises the alarm for sound regulations to increase collection and recycling.’
The researchers from the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) are pleading for urgent action on e-waste to save future generations from the worsening climate crisis.
Lead author Dr Kees Baldé added: ‘No more than 1% of demand for essential rare earth elements is met by e-waste recycling. Simply put: Business as usual can’t continue.
‘This new report represents an immediate call for greater investment in infrastructure development, more promotion of repair and reuse, capacity building, and measures to stop illegal e-waste shipments.
‘And the investment would pay for itself in spades.’
The team say challenges that create a widening gap include technological progress, higher consumption, limited repair options, shorter product life cycles, society’s growing electronification, design shortcomings, and inadequate e-waste management infrastructure.
Less than a quarter of electronics were recycled (Picture: Getty/iStockphoto)
Collection and recycling rates are highest for heavier and bulkier equipment categories, such as large devices, temperature exchange equipment, screens, and monitors.
Careless disposal of tech is not just impacting the environment, but the economy as well.
The report shows that the metals embedded in 2022 e-waste amount to a worth US $91 billion (£72 billion).
As less than a quarter (22.3%) of the year’s e-waste mass is being properly collected and recycled meaning around $62 billion (£48 billion) worth of recoverable natural resources were wasted in one year.
Ms Vanessa Gray from the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau said: ‘The Global E-waste Monitor shows that we are currently wasting US $91 billion in valuable metals due to insufficient e-waste recycling.
‘We must seize the economic and environmental benefits of proper e-waste management. Otherwise, the digital ambitions of our future generations will face significant risks.’
Professor Ruediger Kuehr from the University of Limerick added: ‘In the face of all this, concrete steps are urgently needed to address and reduce e-waste. Improved e-waste management could result in a global net positive of US $38 billion, representing a significant economic opportunity while addressing climate change and health impacts.’