At 1800Ewaste we tend to focus on the issues facing Australia and the ever growing, ever present issue of electronic waste recycling. However, we thought it was about time we to shift the focus, and the blame, by having a look at electronic waste and recycling statistics in the United States and the U.K…

Supersize my Television…the obsession with larger than life televisions is not a good omen for ewaste in the U.S.A

  • US consumers bought 3.3 million HD televisions just in time for the Super Bowl in 2010. 
  • Of the 2.25 million tonnes obsolete electronics in 2007, 82% were discarded…into landfill. By 2008, this figure had reached 3.16 million tonnes, but the recycling rate was still just 13.6%.
  • About 304 million electrical items were thrown out from American households in 2005 – 2/3rds of them still worked.
  • About 25 million televisions become obsolete every year.
  •  68% of American’s have unwanted televisions or computers stored in their home. An estimated 235 million electrical items, including televisions, computers and monitors, are being stored by consumers, because there’s nothing else to do with them.
  • 26.8 million Digital televisions were sold in the US in 2008; this figure was predicted to rise to 34.5 million in 2009.
  • North American accounts for 83% of the 50” + television market
  • Recycling just one million laptops would save enough energy to power more than 3, 500 homes in America for a year.
  • 90% of Ewaste in the US is exported to China and Nigeria – this is not yet illegal due to the fact that America has yet to ratify the Basel Convention.
  • Ewaste is the fastest growing waste stream in the UK.
  • An estimated 1.2 million tonnes of electronic waste is produced each year in the UK
  • In the last 5 years, 12.5 million computers have been thrown into UK landfills.
  • 25% of Brits take their PC to the dump rather than a recycling facility.
  • UK households produce 900, 000 tonnes of electronic waste each year from domestic appliances, such as washing machines, fridges and computers. 80% of all ewaste created, are actually household items.
  • An estimated 2.5 million fridges and 5 million television sets are thrown away each year.
  • The British only recycle 17% of their waste – some of their European counterparts recycle up to 60% of theirs.
  • Ewaste is estimated to be growing at a rate of 80,000 tonnes a year.

God Save the Queen…and the fridge, the freezer, the washing machine, the computer, because they are all heading for landfill.

  • Ewaste is the fastest growing waste stream in the UK.
  • An estimated 1.2 million tonnes of electronic waste is produced each year in the UK
  • In the last 5 years, 12.5 million computers have been thrown into UK landfills.
  • 25% of Brits take their PC to the dump rather than a recycling facility.
  • UK households produce 900, 000 tonnes of electronic waste each year from domestic appliances, such as washing machines, fridges and computers. 80% of all ewaste created, are actually household items.
  • An estimated 2.5 million fridges and 5 million television sets are thrown away each year.
  • The British only recycle 17% of their waste – some of their European counterparts recycle up to 60% of theirs.
  • Ewaste is estimated to be growing at a rate of 80,000 tonnes a year.