Toxic Tech: Safely Recycle Your Old Electronics This Earth Day

As people around the world celebrate Earth Day through gatherings, programs and initiatives, it is vital to highlight the fastest growing and most hazardous type of trash worldwide - electronic waste.

Each year in the U.S., millions of tons of electronics are thrown away, re-sold, shipped overseas, or dumped in a landfill. LCD screens and backlit electronics contain mercury and other hazardous materials, which causes immeasurable harm to the environment. Joseph Yob, e-recycling expert and co-owner of 3S International - the only U.S. company with the exclusive technology capable of processing LCD screens at a high rate - brings practical insight to the issue.

“As our lifestyles continue to evolve through new technology, we’re using more and more of the latest and greatest devices faster than ever - cell phones, tablets, TVs, laptops and more,” said Yob. “When you upgrade to a smartwatch or new phone, what happens to the old one? As we generate massive amounts of hazardous e-waste, it’s critical that consumers, businesses and communities safely manage and recycle their toxic tech.”

If the sheer volume of the problem is not alarming enough, it is important to note that many LCD/flat screens and various tech devices are classified as hazardous waste. While e-waste currently represents 2 percent of America’s trash in landfills, it actually constitutes 70 percent of overall toxic waste. Staggering amounts of end-of-life electronics routinely pile up in landfills and are shipped overseas to rot, releasing toxins such as lead, cadmium and mercury into the environment.

Right now only 12.5% of e-waste is currently recycled. This means that education is incredibly important, especially around Earth Day.

It is time for all technology users to understand that these devices contain harmful chemicals and that each individual must take responsibility for the safe disposal and processing of phones, laptops, LCD screens and many other products that are part of twenty-first century daily life.

This Earth Day, it is crucial that businesses understand the new corporate social responsibility: not only doing good in terms of charitable donations, but in terms of how trash and technology are discarded. Businesses, communities and families alike can do their part by using an e-Stewards or R2 certified recycler, researching their recycler’s downstream practices, and understand that proper electronic processing may come with a price tag.

Yob’s company, 3S International, specializes in recycling hazardous LCD and mercury-containing products on a large scale - while addressing previously unsolvable e-recycling issues. 3S International’s Tinley Park facility houses the only operating BLUBOX unit in the country, which reduces end-of-life electronics into recyclable fragments and safely extracts the rare earth elements - at a rate of 2,200 pounds per hour and 15 million pounds of electronics annually.

The company owns a total of three BLUBOX units and has plans to open a new electronics recycling facility in the metro Detroit area this year. 3S International currently accepts electronics from Illinois, Indiana and Michigan.

About 3S International

Founded by experienced professionals, 3S International’s safe, secure, and sustainable processes revolutionize electronics and mixed lamps recycling. 3S International is a processor - not an asset manager, exporter or reseller. The company’s proprietary BLUBOX technology specializes in hazardous LCD, mixed lamp and mercury-containing products to address previously unsolvable e-recycling issues and ensure that all electronics and lamps are recycled into reusable raw materials. 3S is headquartered in Mount Pleasant, Mich. and currently operates at Chicago’s Tinley Park and the city of Taylor in southeast Michigan. The leadership team has secured full certification in the highest industry standards, including ISO 14001 and e-Stewards, and is on track to open six to ten new facilities in the U.S. in the next three years. Visit www.3srecycling.com to learn more.