Not long ago, CBS'"60 Minutes" program broadcast a tale on e-waste and global dumping. The reporters followed a trail of electronic recycling items from a Denver-based company all how you can Hong Kong, China and caught the so-called "recycling" company red-handed engaging in global e-waste dumping.

With over 80% of recycled electronics and computers finding yourself as high-tech e-waste in developing countries such as for example China, India, and Africa, we must step up as responsible citizens of the planet and choose computer and electronics recycling companies very carefully. We must support only those electronics recycling companies which can be running both a socially and an environmentally sound operation, end-to-end. To know how global dumping occurs, it helps to first understand the business design for electronic recycling.

To sustain as a small business, electronic recyclers must generate enough revenues from all its recycling and reuse services and the reclamation of precious metals and other recycling materials, minus operating costs and the price of de-manufacturing those items that yield no value (yet harm the environment).

The difference between an environmentally responsible computer and electronics recycling company and an irresponsible you can be broken down as follows: a) how they generate reuse revenues; b) how they reclaim precious metals and skip hire thatcham materials; c) how they manage the de-manufacturing procedure for low-value, toxic elements.

Look at the precious metal reclamation process for a moment. A responsible company would have to purchase having a secure working environment with proper protective gear for this workers and proper waste treatment procedures to stop environmental contamination. Additionally, a responsible electronics recycling company will operate using specialized de-manufacturing equipment that protects the workers from the harmful materials or dust that escapes through the de-manufacturing process.

An irresponsible recycling company avoids any investment in the de-manufacturing area. In fact, irresponsible recycling companies never lay eyes on the workers who eventually break apart the leftover electronic parts. As noticed in the "60 Minutes" program, those workers are typically low-paid laborers from remote villages, who use bare hands and primitive tools such as for example chisels and hammers to pry the precious materials from the discarded items. The ultimate discarded parts are then dumped anywhere - in rivers or streams or burned in a swamp - causing major public health issues.

The most hazardous materials found in e-waste are not the reclaimed precious metals, but the low-value, toxic materials such as for example Mercury found in switches and flat screens and the brominated flame retardants used on printed circuit boards, cables and plastic casings. These are the materials that need major investment in the de-manufacturing process. To sum up, the fee to operate a secure operating de-manufacturing facility makes responsible electronic recycling much more difficult compared to the much used alternate: global dumping.

Yielding to the larger reclaim prices made available from the irresponsible global dumpers, many so-called recycling collectors send their materials to irresponsible recyclers, who consequently "sell" the recycling cargo to exporters. A few handshakes later and the e-waste cargo arrives at the ports of the global village's poorest countries. Considering that the U.S. prohibits dumping of electronic waste in other countries, most of the e-waste cargo is shipped under the label "Used Equipment," whereas actually most of the recycled electronic waste is either too old or too out-of-order to own any reuse value.

In order to identify a responsible recycling company, one must first be able to pinpoint the telltale signs that the recycling company engages in global dumping.

Irresponsible recycling companies:

Avoid educating the public concerning the e-waste crisis either on their company Internet site or inside their company marketing collateral. Irresponsible electronics recyclers allow it to be look super easy so that the consumer won't ask any questions.

Omit factual statements about how they track and manage the recycling process in order to avoid global dumping. Again, the less the customer knows, the easier it's for an irresponsible electronics recycler to engage in some form of global dumping

Host greenwash events with reputable nonprofits that don't understand the proper recycling process. By making the electronics recycling process sound easy and by hiding under the guise of fundraising for schools, chambers of commerce, police association leagues and other nonprofits, these electronics recyclers further disarm everyone about "donating" their unwanted electronics at "fundraising" events. Electronics recyclers participating at a greenwash fundraiser do not charge any recycling fees, yet generate enough funds to subscribe to the nonprofit and can still pay the high costs of de-manufacturing toxic elements. This business design doesn't exist because it's simply too good to be true. It's also an abuse of the goodwill of the nonprofits involved. The stark reality is, these fundraising "recyclers" collect items that may be reclaimed for cash and then dump the others on developing countries. They incur minimal handling costs by selling them as "exports." That's how 80% of computer and electronics recycling materials in the U.S. end up as e-waste in developing countries.

Fail to offer either a lasting address for his or her electronics recycling facility or a proper permit to operate as a recycler. Many make use of a P.O. Box or simply a phone number that they publish during neighborhood pick-up campaigns. When you call, it always goes straight to an answering machine. There's no one available to share with you more about their services.