Thornleigh Community Recycling Centre

I was not able to get to the Recycling Centre due to COVID-19 restrictions, so it took a lot of work in order to get the necessary data. I called up the centre several times, and the one who answered always directed me to email the E-Waste Centre. This often resulted in nothing. However, I have finally received data!

The Centre receives a wide variety of material; mainly televisions, computers and peripherals; basically anything with a plug they receive. The Centre typically receives approx. 490kg of material per day; this waste is generated by households in the Hornsby Shire area.

E-Waste is produced because people choose to dispose of their devices rather than repair them, as well as manufacturers deliberately shortening product lifespans and targeting ads at consumers to convince them to buy the latest device. E-Waste sent there is taken to a facility in Sydney in which the materials are sorted into types and processed in order to recover materials. These materials are used to make new products. This reduces the need to mine for new materials. Typical Australian households produce 73kg of E-Waste each year.

Products could last longer if they were taken better care of by their owners; such as using a case and screen protector. My exceptional care means the majority of the phones currently residing in The iPhone Sanctuary are 5+ years old, with the oldest one being 12 years old. The phones at the sanctuary also get repaired when possible; if more people learnt phone repairs, they would keep their devices for longer. Most of the phones are iPhones, which are high quality phones. High quality products are meant to last, and renting is better than buying for a product that'll only be used sparingly.

The best devices for long term usage are ones that are easily repairable by average people, such as the FairPhone.

They sold THAT many iPhones?!

Apple has recently introduced the new iPhone SE, dubbed the SE2. Considering that the world is in lockdown due to COVID-19, it's unusual that Apple is releasing a new iPhone. But more importantly, the release of a new iPhone will lead to the growing E-Waste problem. Over the lifespan of the iPhone 6 and 6+, which was the best selling iPhone to date, 220 million units were sold (Wikipedia, last updated 2020). This means that 220 million older phones became E-Waste or relegated to a drawer, and most of those 220 million iPhone 6 and 6+ units are soon to be, if not already, in that same position.
Recycling phones is not as environmentally friendly as it's cracked up to be; material recovered from old devices are inferior to virgin materials, and the recycling process itself requires a lot of energy. In some cases, the devices in question are sent to 3rd world countries to be recycled, and this contributes a lot of toxins to the atmosphere, as well as being a health concern for the humans (iFixit, year unknown). In fact, MobileMuster states on its website that the best thing that can be done to reduce E-Waste is to keep the devices alive for as long as possible, and only recycling the devices that are damaged beyond repair (MobileMuster, 2020).

In response to this, the The iPhone Sanctuary was set up by the blog's author. The sanctuary ensures that phones that are unwanted or unprofitable to their former owners can end up somewhere other than a shredder at a recycling facility. So far, 21 devices live at The iPhone Sanctuary, with the oldest device, Tiffany Myra iPhone 3G, being 12 years old! This shows that Apple products are the best devices for long term usage. Not only do they last the longest, but Apple also has the longest support for their devices, being 6-7 years since the device's initial release.

The best way that people can be encouraged to keep their devices for longer is by slowing down the rate at which new devices are released. The root cause of the E-Waste problem is that people are tempted by the new features of a new device that makes older devices look obsolete in comparison. If companies only released devices every 2 years, then people would save money as well as the environment as they would keep their devices for longer, and only get a new device when the current one becomes damaged beyond repair.

1. https://www.mobilemuster.com.au/recycling/
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPhone_6
3. https://www.ifixit.com/Right-to-Repair/Recycling

MobileMuster

MobileMuster is an E-Waste recycling company, specializing in mobes, that has recycled 1,500 tonnes of waste material since its conception in 1998 (this data came from 2019). This would equate to approx. 71 tonnes per year. MobileMuster is contributing to the recycling of E-Waste, and the circular economy as a whole. It ensures that all material it receives is recycled in a way that ensures 99.9% of materials are recovered (MobileMuster, 2020).

A large amount E-Waste is produced in the 1st place as people are constantly upgrading their devices. This is largely due to the concept of planned obsolescence; advertisements for new devices flaunt their new or improved features in a way to make the devices from the previous year dull in comparison. In addition to that, large companies always ensure that a software update excludes older devices, and make devices difficult to repair by typical people. Apple is particularly guilty, as it incorporates pentalobe security screws that require a special screwdriver to open, as well as holding down batteries with ridiculously strong adhesive. This means that if the device is too old and/or too expensive to be serviced by a legitimate technician, it must be repaired by a novice i.e an average joe. Apple (and other companies) extreme lengths to prevent normal people from servicing their phones can put people off, which will in turn lead to the developing E-Waste problem (WatchMojo, 2017).

1. https://www.mobilemuster.com.au/recycling/
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7zuMREQleI