The proliferation of electronic devices has contributed to the accelerated surge of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in e-waste, according to a new study in Circular Economy.
E-waste GHG emissions rose 53 percent between 2014 and 2020. Researchers anticipate e-waste will annually generate 852 million metric tons of CO2 compounds by 2030.
“Increasing the useful lifespan expectancy of electronic devices by 50%–100% can mitigate up to half of the total GHG emissions,” the study’s authors stated. “Such outcomes will require coordination of eco-design and source reduction, repair, refurbishment, and reuse. These strategies can be a key to efforts towards climate neutrality for the electronics industry, which is currently among the top eight sectors accounting for more than 50% of the global carbon footprint.”
