EcoWaste to public: Safely get rid of old electronics

MANILA, Philippines — Ahead of the celebration of “World Day for Safety and Health at Work” on April 28, an environmental group reminded the public to properly dispose of their electronic trash.

EcoWaste Coalition launched an event on Saturday in bid to promote the safe handling and disposal of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) or e-waste.

Joining the event held at Barangay Phil-Am in Quezon City were key stakeholders of the “Safe PCB and E-Waste Management Project,” the DENR-Environmental Management Bureau, and United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

According to a report from the “Safe PCB and E-Waste Management Project”, e-waste can cause health and environmental hazards if not disposed properly.

“Promoting safe and ecological management of WEEEs will protect workers, the rest of the society as well as the environment against adverse effects caused by improper handling, storage, transport, dismantling, recycling or disposal that can cause release of toxic substances from such hazardous waste,” Jover Larion of EcoWaste and Acting Project Coordinator for WEEE Management IEC, said in a statement.

“Polybrominated diphenyl ethers or PBDEs, as an example, are persistent organic pollutants (POPs) used as flame retardants in old electronic and electrical products, which can be released through improper dismantling of WEEEs and can result to serious effects to thyroid, liver and kidney, and possibly even cancer, among other health issues,” he added.

During the event, EcoWaste Coalition led in the collection of electronic waste. Among the e-waste collected were television sets, computer monitors, cell phones, laptops, printers, servers, modem routers, appliances and other gadgets and electrical products that have reached the end of their useful lives.

The collected waste were them taken to a facility in Laguna for proper treatment and disposal, the EcoWaste Coalition said. /muf