Susanne Dittke of EnviroSense sent me an article which she penned for Opportunity Magazine recently. It contains some shockingly interesting numbers which I quote “as is” below:

It should come as no surprise that e-waste is officially now the fastest growing waste stream in South Africa. In larger urban metropoles, it constitutes already 5-8% of the municipal solid waste mix, accumulating at a rate three times that of other more traditional solid waste items such as locally unrecyclable packaging etc.

‘Redundant’ electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste) is generated from the rapid advance and uptake of new technology at an ever increasing rate. A recent assessment done in South Africa by the e-Waste Association of South Africa revealed that the combined volume of information technology and office equipment, consumer electronics and white goods that reach consumer markets today, will in five to 10 years swell to a waste avalanche of between one to two million tons per year, with an annual growth rate of between 10%-20%.

With clever marketing ploys and upgrade schemes, cellphone companies could already convince the average South African that a cellphone is hopelessly outdated after two years.

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