Progress and Challenges of Addressing Toxics in Electronics: Circular Economic, Green Economic and Green Environmental Linkages

Abstract

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), circular chemistry and green  economy models reflect projects, programmes and processes designed towards achieving the ambitions of promotion of environmental health and creation of the needed awareness for healthy ecosystems and sustainably managed environment. This study submits that, to address toxics in  electronics, processes have been designed to reduce and/or replace the toxics in electronics in order to get them fit into the circular economy.  Governments, electronics companies, non-governmental organizations and  consumers are being mobilized to apply designed means of assessing the hazards of chemicals in electronics for a safer choice from alternatives. Challenges include poor spread of the awareness, efforts and initiatives, which are presently obtained in the United States of America and Europe  alone, whereas major producers and consumers of electronics in Asia are yet to join. Yet, e-wastes are churned-up sometimes, for designing replacement of the toxics also, raw materials for electronics too that are made cheaper. Neither functionalized nor commonplace to electronics take back policy such to form a closed-loop recycling programme means obsolescence principle is observed churning-out further, more e-waste. Thus, at an average of 1,000 cellphones per person and increasing toxic human exposure via electronics, there is the need for quicker awareness creation/raising and advocacy, and more desperate policies and practices  to save the population the risks of toxics in electronics. Following, the  integrated circular, green, and environmental strategy is also proposed.