The United States and China contributed most to record mountains of
electronic waste such as cellphones, hair dryers and fridges in 2014 and
less than a sixth ended up recycled worldwide, a U.N. study said on
Sunday.
Overall, 41.8 million tonnes of “e-waste”—defined as
any device with an electric cord or battery—were dumped around the globe
in 2014 and only an estimated 6.5 million tonnes were taken for
recycling, the United Nations University (UNU) said.
“Worldwide, e-waste constitutes a valuable ‘urban mine’, a large potential reservoir of recyclable materials,” said David Malone, the U.N. under-secretary-general and rector of UNU.
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The report estimated that the discarded materials, including gold, silver, iron and copper, was worth some $52 billion.
The United States led e-waste dumping with 7.1 million tonnes in 2014, ahead of China on 6.0 million and followed by Japan, Germany and India, it said.
Read more: Americas - US, China contribute most 'mountains' of electronic waste - France 24
“Worldwide, e-waste constitutes a valuable ‘urban mine’, a large potential reservoir of recyclable materials,” said David Malone, the U.N. under-secretary-general and rector of UNU.
\
The report estimated that the discarded materials, including gold, silver, iron and copper, was worth some $52 billion.
The United States led e-waste dumping with 7.1 million tonnes in 2014, ahead of China on 6.0 million and followed by Japan, Germany and India, it said.
Read more: Americas - US, China contribute most 'mountains' of electronic waste - France 24