NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — U.N. agencies have warned about electrical and electronic waste increase worldwide during recycling Interest rates remain low and are likely to fall further.

Authorities define “e-waste” as any discarded device with a plug or battery, including cell phones and electronic devices cars and toys, television, E-cigarettesLaptops and solar panels.

In a new report released Wednesday, the United Nations’ International Telecommunications Union and research arm UNITAR said about 62 million tons of “e-waste” were generated in 2022, enough to fill semi-trucks bumper-to-bumper could be lined up around the globe. It is on track to reach 82 million tonnes by 2030.

metals – including copper, gold and iron — accounted for half of the 62 million tons, worth a total of about $91 billion, the report said. Plastics accounted for 17 million tons and the remaining 14 million tons include materials such as composites and glass.

According to the United Nations, in 2022, just over 22% of e-waste mass was properly collected and recycled. This share is expected to fall to 20% by the end of the decade as this waste “rises at a staggering rate” due to higher consumption. limited repair options, shorter product life cycles, increasing “electronization” of society and inadequate infrastructure for the disposal of e-waste, authorities said.

They said some of the discarded electronic devices contained dangerous elements such as mercury as well as rare earth metals sought after by manufacturers in the technology industry. Currently, only 1% of the demand for the 17 minerals that make up the rare metals is met through recycling.

According to the report, about half of all e-waste is generated in Asia, where few countries have e-waste laws or collection targets. Recycling and collection rates exceed 40% in Europe, where per capita waste generation is highest: nearly 18 kilograms (39 pounds). In Africa, which produces the least of the world’s five major regions, recycling and collection rates are around 1%, it said.

“Recent research shows that the global e-waste challenge will only grow,” said Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava, head of ITU’s Telecommunications Development Office. “With less than half of the world’s population implementing and enforcing approaches to address the problem, this raises concerns about the need for robust regulations to promote collection and recycling.”

For some, e-waste represents a way to make money by scavenging for sought-after raw materials despite the health risks of trash in developing countries.

At the Dandora landfill where the garbage was collected Kenyans In the capital, Nairobi, despite a court declaring it full over a generation ago, scavengers are ending up trying to make a living by sifting through the garbage for e-waste that can be sold to companies as recycled material.

Steve Okoth hopes the power will continue so he can generate an income, but he knows the risks.

“When the e-waste arrives here, it contains some powder that affects my health,” he said, adding that heating electronic devices releases gases and he “cannot come to work due to chest problems.”

However, Okoth said they had no choice: “We are now used to the smoke because if you don’t go to work, you won’t eat.”

Recycling facilities such as the WEEE Center in Nairobi have collection points across Kenya where people can safely dispose of old electronic devices.

“We are taking an inventory of the items,” said Catherine Wasolia, WEEE’s chief operating officer, to review the data on submitted devices and clean them up. They then test each one to assess whether it “can be reused or repurposed.”

E-waste expert George Masila is concerned about the impact of e-waste on the ground.

“If all this e-waste is there – either in landfills or dumped mercilessly somewhere else – it could have a significant impact on the soil,” Masila said. “Every year it rains and water flows and attracts all these elements that are deposited in the environment. The water becomes contaminated.”

He said greater recycling and reuse of such materials “are some of the things we should consider.”

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