PCBs
Environmentally responsible electronics
Emma Armstrong, group commercial & electronics sustainability director at In2tec, discusses the latest developments in recyclable printed circuit board assemblies
E -waste is a health and
environmental hazard, containing toxic additives or hazardous substances such as mercury, lead, and cadmium. E-waste can leak harmful toxins into the ground and the air, that when breathed in or ingested can cause serious illnesses. It can cause damage to the brain and coordination system, children have been known to suffer from memory and cardiovascular issues, and adults can experience effects on liver function, and sperm quality. The long list of the detrimental effects of e-waste are devastatingly real, and
at a rate faster than a human can count! Moreover, there’s the ‘world’ as we know it. Global temperature increases, warming oceans, shrinking ice sheets, glacial retreat, rising sea levels, as well as acidification of the oceans are all evidenced impacts of man’s continued production of CO2 emissions. There is more carbon dioxide in our atmosphere than at any other time in history.
The evidence for rapid climate change is compelling so the aim here is not to spend time on the adverse impacts of climate change; but rather to try to help
us understand the current reality and the possible solutions that the electronics industry can and must provide for the sustainability of humans.
I don’t think it is an exaggeration to say that the environmental impact of e-waste is on a trajectory to become one of the major ecological disasters eclipsing both plastic waste and chemical waste. So why don’t we hear much about it? Because we don’t currently have an effective solution. Even the idea of trying to implement a change for e-waste recycling is financially crippling. So more often than not the
solution is just to ‘bury it or burn it’. The drive to zero emissions is a no- brainer, but whilst pondering these realities it is imperative to understand the other side of the coin. Achieving Net Zero emissions is about inherent fundamental design concept changes. Net Zero isn’t simply about reducing our usage and energy consumption. There needs to be improvements in the materials used, paradigm shifts in the process of manufacture, and crucially end- of-life reusability, as well as environmentally sound and safe disposal. All this must not be forgotten.
48 November 2022
Components in Electronics
www.cieonline.co.uk
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