Have you ever watched Pixar’s Wall-E? It’s a great film about environmentalism. In the movie, humans had to evacuate Earth because trash was getting piled up so high that it looked like a skyscraper! Then, Robots had to come in and clean up the trash.
It’s a powerful movie that made everyone aware of the effects that pollution and improper waste management can do to our planet. While the skyscrapers of trash may be an exaggeration in the film, at this rate, it can be true in the future!
It is up to us, laptop owners, to be more responsible in handling our devices. Right now, millions of laptops are getting discarded every day because they are obsolete or just broken. That occurs on a daily basis. Imagine then, this has been happening for so many years now that it kick - started a whole new trend in pollution, which is electronic waste.
Electronic waste, or e-waste for short, is a type of pollution that encompasses any kind of electronic devices. In short, E-waste is comprised of computers, laptops, monitors, keyboards, televisions, cell phones and even microwaves and toasters!
All of these devices contain chemicals that are very dangerous to the environment. While sitting in their landfills, they are exposed to the harsh weather, causing them to erode, which leads to a chemical leak. These chemicals aren’t only dangerous to the environment, but also to people around it.
The problem has gotten much out of hand that governments around the world have passed their own laws on how to handle e - waste! People were dying because no one took notice. All of these obsolete computer parts are just lying around waiting to kill someone.
Now, everyone is paying the price. Companies are doing the best they can to reduce waste by encouraging buyers to trade in or return their products once they are broken. It’s a good start, but it’s not enough.
Right now, people are trying to figure out the best way to recycle or trade all of that plastic and metal.
How about you? What can you do to stop humans from evacuating Earth before everyone gets buried in a mountain of trash?
If you’re going to discard your laptop, don’t just throw it in the trash can. The best you can do is to extract the parts you think can be good spare parts, such as the RAM, and use it to upgrade your computer.
Better yet, just upgrade the computer if you can! Most laptops can be customized in a way, but if it’s not possible, then buying a laptop which allows customization is good.
Everyone needs to play a part in preserving the environment. Spread the word about how much e - waste is piling up in the landfills all around the world.
Tell your friends, your parents, your grandparents and everyone else because the whole planet is all in this together. It will take a huge amount of will power to get something happening, but it’s better to start now than to start too late.