Scientists call for recycling gadget waste

THE recycling of e-waste must urgently be increased because mining the Earth for metals to make new gadgets is unsustainable, scientists have said.

A new campaign run by the Royal Society Of Chemistry is drawing attention to the unsustainability of continuing to mine for materials used in consumer technology.

One study estimated that the world’s mountain of discarded electronics, in 2021 alone, weighed 57 million tonnes.

The society says there now needs to be a global effort to mine that waste, rather than mining the Earth.

It points out that geopolitical unrest, including the war in Ukraine, has caused huge spikes in the price of materials like nickel, a key element in electric vehicle batteries, with some elements now simply running out.

Professor Tom Welton, president of the Royal Society of Chemistry, said: “Our tech consumption habits remain highly unsustainable and have left us at risk of exhausting the raw elements we need.

“It is essential governments and businesses urgently do more to develop a circular economy which can tackle the world’s growing e-waste crisis and alleviate the strain on supply chains.”