Toxic Concerns Overshadow Digital Transition
Many environmentalist groups such as Greenpeace and the Electronics TakeBack Coalition are advocating ways of informing the public of safe recycling options. These groups are concerned about the impending increase of electronic waste that will occur after the analog to digital transition is completed. A very large percentage of Americans who will not be able to use their older televisions after the conversion will just throw them away without realizing the consequences.
The Environmental Protection Agency, the Government Accountability Office and the House Foreign Affairs Committee are investigating reports of companies exporting discarded electronics to other countries such as China and India. Rather than just overfilling our landfills with unwanted electronics, companies are sending them overseas to be dismantled and discarded. These countries as well as our own, in disposing of old electronics run the danger of environmental toxic poisoning. Once these televisions are dismantled, toxic chemicals such as lead, mercury and cadmium can leak into the ground and water.
Manufacturers are being encouraged thru a campaign called Take Back My TV to offer alternatives to just dumping your old television sets. This campaign has put together a video to educate the public on the hazards of just dumping your sets and offering them an alternative. You can see the video on this site http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/10/dtv-transition.html. Hopefully, this video as well as other educational venues will help cut down on unnecessary environmental poisoning.
Written by acwriter
Ref: www.blog.wired.com & www.washingtonpost.com
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