Canadians take our role in the world seriously. We consider our nation an enlightened one and are often the first to step up to the plate in global issues, political or disaster related. Were you aware that our electronic waste (e-waste) is shipped to developing countries for processing? Were you aware that the EPA predicts that by 2030 there will be 700% increase in e-waste exported from North America.
Many of these products have toxic components such as lead, mercury and cadmium that, when improperly disposed of, damage the environment.
A lifestyle of irresponsibility cannot possibly lead to a life lived responsibly. By reducing our usage, optimizing life cycles of our electronics and implementing environmental recycling programs and regulations we can help to shift the tide of environmental irresponsibility.
With little regulation, low wages and education, the peoples of developing countries welcome our e-waste and seize the opportunity to earn a small wage for their efforts in recycling with little worry about the repercussions. Developing countries are quickly becoming environmental wastelands. Literal dumping grounds for waste from the world’s biggest consumers – North Americans. Is this the Canadian way? Can we make a purchase with one hand and refuse complete responsibility for the eventual waste from that purchase?
The hazardous job of dismantling and recycling this e-waste is and will continue to be the burden of developing countries if we don’t change our ways. How do we change our ways?
- Take good care of your equipment – if it’s running well, you won’t have to upgrade.
- Buy refurbished or off-lease products at the local liquidators – the longer we can keep products use the longer we delay the inevitable recycling.
- Use less, buy less – The number one way to keep e-waste to a minimum is to purchase less equipment, phones, etc. Get the most out of your equipment through cloud computing, virtual servers and terminal services.
- Divert our e-Waste – e-waste will last at least 1000 years in a landfill before it starts to breakdown. Diversion is the number two choice for deferring our waste and getting more use fromit. We can divert our e-waste to useful, redeployment programs. (www.thinkrecycle.com, www.earthshare.com, http://www.era.ca/donations/recycling/index.html )
- Buy the enlightened way – by items made of recycled materials and that are recyclable in their own right. We can steer public policy and manufacturers with our dollars, making others take responsibility where they should.
MBCSolutions, a leader in Green IT Strategies, is helping Ontario business compete with open source solutions and Cloud Computing, which drastically reduces the amount of e-waste exported. In 2009 MBCSolutions shifted from a traditional approach for the delivery of IT to one that reflects the needs of all businesses in the new, post-recession, green economy. This Green IT Strategy reduces the cost of software, equipment and power, reduces downtime, and empowers business to react to change quickly. It also helps you to sell more, deliver more and spend less helping you put more money in your pocket.
Green IT Strategies will make Ontario businesses more competitive. They enable business to do more work with less effort, spend less on IT; access more information and enable fast change.
