musicMagpie and its US brand, Decluttr, have revealed the dangers of our growing e-waste problem by visualising its scale compared to beloved landmarks and cities around the world.
According to the 2020 E-waste Monitor, the world is set to produce approximately 57 million metric tonnes of e-waste in 2021, which is enough to cover 52% of the earth’s surface end-to-end in smart phones.
The report also predicts that global e-waste will reach 74 million metric tonnes by 2030 – making e-waste the world’s fastest-growing domestic waste stream. Fuelled by factors such as population growth, digitisation, upgrade culture, products with short replacement cycles and few options for repair, e-waste is increasing three times faster than the world’s population.
Despite this growing environmental issue, research conducted by musicMagpie found that an alarming four in five (79%) Brits do not know what e-waste is. When given the definition of e-waste, nearly a third (31%) didn’t believe it damaged the environment or were unsure, while 45% weren’t aware it impacted the climate emergency.
If sent to landfills, e-waste can leak harmful chemicals into the soil, or if incinerated, fumes release chemicals into the air, contributing to global warming. Not only this, but everything from our phones to our laptops rely heavily on precious materials to operate, which are limited resources and directly impact climate change when being extracted from the earth.
Using data from the Global E-waste Monitor to create a series of powerful images and video, musicMagpie visualises the astonishing volume of monthly e-waste production scaled to the size of the most well-known, iconic landmarks and landscapes around the world.
- In the UK, for example, it is reported that the country produces a shocking 133,141 tonnes of e-waste in a single month and is equivalent in weight to 11 Shards.
- When comparing e-waste production to areas in the environment most at risk of destruction from the effects of global warming, it was found that the world produces enough e-waste in a single month to cover Antarctica almost two times over and the Amazon Rainforest almost four times over.
“There’s a stark contrast between the beauty and history represented by each nation’s cultural icons and the reality of what we’re doing to our country and planet by not properly recycling our tech,” said Steve Oliver, CEO of musicMagpie, “Electronic waste is a problem that’s not discussed as often as it should be, however, we can all do our bit to become a part of the solution.”
“While technology will always be present in consumers’ lives, it’s important that we find better ways to keep it from negatively impacting the environment,” said Oliver. “We can do this by promoting a circular economy, whereby tech device life cycles are greatly increased through recycling, refurbishment and reuse.”