The air smells acrid from the squat gas burners that sit outside homes, melting wires to recover copper and cooking computer motherboards to release gold. Migrant workers in filthy clothes smash picture tubes by hand to recover glass and electronic parts, releasing as much as 6.5 pounds of lead dust. For five years, environmentalists and the media have highlighted the danger to Chinese workers who dismantle much of the world's junked electronics. Yet a visit to this southeastern Chinese town regarded as the heartland of "e-waste" disposal shows little has improved. In fact, the problem is growing worse because of China's own contribution. China now produces more than 1 million tons of e-waste each year "Most e-waste in China comes from overseas, but the amount of domestic e-waste is on the rise," he said. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, it is ten times cheaper to export e-waste than to dispose of it at home. |
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