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Over the period of 2020 to 2021, there has been a rapid increase in the number of people who watch/purchase TVs, especially due to the massive global pandemic and most people having to isolate themselves at home. Though TVs have brought us a lot of entertainment this past year, electronics companies have been hiding a big secret that may be more dangerous than you think.
For decades, television producers have been putting toxic organohalogen flame retardant chemicals (OFRs) into their products, encased in plastic casings. These televisions are sold at major U.S. retailers like Best Buy and Amazon. Because of this, a lot of our TVs are part of a large; and growing, source of toxic pollutants in our homes, environment, and workplaces. To add more salt to the wound, they pose serious health threats.
When you dispose/recycle televisions that contain OFRs, they can potentially release dioxins which are among the most toxic chemicals known to science. Workers and people who live in the vicinity can breathe in these harmful chemicals and face medical problems. Household fires can also release these chemicals, which has led to firefighters supporting the efforts to ban flame retardants.
Though the situation may seem unchangeable, there is still hope. Best Buy; a major electronics company, has launched a chemicals policy with the goal to reduce the use of chemicals. They are heading in the right direction, even if there are still a lot of things to improve on in their policies. Let's just hope that more companies hop on the bandwagon!
Learn more:
Written by Amelia Halverson
Imagine breaking one piece of an electronic device, for example a battery, and having to buy a completely new one just because you just couldn't replace one item. This happens with anything from phones to cars, and we sadly can't do much about it. Not only is it an inconvenience for the consumer, it also increases e-waste by getting rid of perfectly good electronics. Since products are getting progressively harder to repair, Right to Repair movements have been pushing for repair tools.
Now, what is the "Right to Repair"? In a couple words, it is the general right for a customer to be able to repair their own electronics/products that they have purchased and rightfully owned. Though this applies to all products, and you can technically fix them, companies try their best to make it as hard as possible to fix their products. Therefore they make you buy a brand new version of the products that broke.
One of the companies that did this was Apple, an incredibly successful electronics company. They have very rare materials/parts that are very specific to, for example, iPhones, so that it would be very hard for customers to fix their iPhone alone.Though this is horrible, especially for the e-waste crisis, it appears that Apple may be changing their ways. Just a couple weeks ago Apple released a “Self Service Repair program” that will help customers perform their own repairs from the comfort of their own homes. Next year, they will start selling pieces and repair tools for the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 in the United States, and then expand to more countries over 2022. This will enable customers to fix their products without having to waste a (almost) completely functional item. Since Apple is such a huge company, this could be a big help with e-waste because there would be a lot less wasting of good electronics.
Though Apple still recommends visiting a professional Apple repair shop (which is super expensive), this new Self Service Repair program might just help with the prevention of e-waste, and give customers a bit less reliant on the brand.
Learn more:
https://www.repair.org/stand-up
https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/19/22787245/apple-iphone-mac-self-service-program-repair-diy
Written by Amelia Halverson
Written by Amelia Halverson
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