THE 21st century plunged the entire world into an electronic revolution.
But with this came many tons of environmentally unfriendly electronic waste (e-waste).
It has been reported more than once in the past of local businesses simply dumping such waste on, for example, the banks of the Berg River.
Apart from many recyclable parts which are in electronic equipment, there are also toxic substances such as mercury, lead and even arsenic, which if disposed of incorrectly, can contaminate the environment.
And especially developing countries such as Africa are being used as the world’s dumping ground for this waste.
But a company has just opened its doors in Paarl to help relieve the local environment of this hazard.
Ecycle in Triangle Park is an organisation which helps to co-ordinate the responsible management of the entire e-waste stream in a non-stop shop format.
The handling of e-waste is more complicated and potentially more dangerous than handling basic recyclables such as cans, paper or glass. This is because electronic appliances are made up of many different elements and contain different chemicals and materials.
At Ecycle, all unused electronic devices, such as TVs, microwave ovens, computers, printers, cellphones, telephones and video/DVD players, can safely be disposed of.
Director Florian Schiller, said that all appliances are manually stripped by well- trained staff, and the various parts from screens and motherboards to tiny electronic devices and batteries, are separated and sorted.
“On circuit boards there are for example tiny traces of gold, silver and even platinum which are sent to a company where these precious metals are melted out.
“Glass, plastics and other metals are separated for recycling. One of our clients makes plastic roof tiles from recycled plastic. All other hazardous materials are disposed of at the hazardous landfill at Vissershok”
Then there is also the creative side to e-waste. NGO’s such as Kunye train unemployed people to transform this unwanted waste into works of art, such a keyrings, jewellery and clocks.
And because many companies continuously upgrade their computers for the latest state of the art technology, their unwanted PCs which are still in working order are refurbished and donated to needy community projects and schools.
Ecycle is open weekdays between 08:00 and 17:00. The public is invited to bring all their unwanted electronic goods to Ecycle at 12 Rectangle Street, Triangle Park for a special recycling day on Saturday 6 November between 09:00 and 14:00. For more information, contact 073-323-8610.
