The UN warned on Wednesday that waste from discarded electronics like mobile phones Ecco Dress Mens Shoes Outlet UK , laptops and refrigerators is piling up worldwide, and it urged far better recycling of the often hazardous rubbish.
A full 44.7 million tons of so-called e-waste was generated around the world in 2016, up eight percent from two years earlier, according to a report from the UN’s International Telecommunication Union, the UN University (UNU) and the International Solid Waste Association.
That’s the equivalent of 4,500 Eiffel Towers, the report noted ECCO Cairo Shoes Outlet UK , adding that the number was expected to swell “significantly” over coming decades.
According to the report, by 2021, the world will likely be cluttered with a full 52.2 million tons of such waste, which today consists mainly of fridges, washing machines and other domestic appliances, but also increasingly mobile phones and computers.
At the same time, this waste Ecco Helsinki Shoes Outlet UK , which can pose serious risks to human health and the environment, is rarely recycled or properly discarded, with most of it ending up at dumpsites or in incinerators.
Only 20 percent of all e-waste, or 8.9 tons, generated last year was documented as properly recycled, while the fate of a full 76 percent of all e-waste around the globe is unknown, the report found.
E-waste management is an urgent issue in today’s digitally dependent world ECCO Leather Shoes Outlet UK , where use of electronic devices is ever increasing,” ITU chief Houlin Zhao said in a statement.
There is also an economic argument for more recycling: the total value of all raw materials present in e-waste, including gold, is estimated to be worth around 55 billion euros (US$64.6 billion), more than most countries’ national economies, the report said.
On a positive note, a growing number of countries are adopting e-waste management policies.
Today Ecco Slip On Shoes Outlet UK , 66 percent of the global population, living in 67 countries, is covered by such policies, up from just 44 percent in 2014, The UN report found.
This is good news as shortening replacement cycles for mobile phones and other devices continue to push the mountains of e-waste ever higher.