Record 53.6 mt of E-waste Dumped Globally in 2019-THE HINDU-06-07-2020

Context:Record 53.6 mt of E-waste Dumped Globally in 2019; China Tops: UN Global E-waste Monitor 2020 Report.

Details:

*In accordance with “The Global E-waste Monitor 2020 report-Quantities, flows, and the circular economy potential” report, the world dumped a record 53.6 million tonnes of e-waste in 2019, an increase of 21% in 5 years.

*China is the biggest contributor to e-waste with 10.1 million tonnes (mt) followed by the United States (US) with 6.9 mt and India with 3.2 mt at 2nd and 3rd rank respectively.

*Out of the total dumped e-waste, just 17.4% of it was recycled.

*E-waste is a health and environmental hazard because it contains toxic or hazardous substances such as mercury which damages the human brain and coordination system.

*Asia generated the greatest volume of e-waste in 2019 some 24.9 Mt, followed by the Americas (13.1 Mt) and Europe (12 Mt), while Africa and Oceania generated 2.9 Mt and 0.7 Mt respectively.

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