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Ipod

When Apple CEO Steve Jobs took the stage to deliver a candid commencement speech at Stanford this past June, a plane flew over the stadium with a banner that read: "Steve -- don't be a mini player -- recycle all e-waste."

This was the latest stunt by the Computer Take-Back Campaign (CTBC), an environmental crusade supported by activist groups who have criticized Apple for lagging behind the rest of the computer industry in its recycling efforts.

The plane's banner referred to Apple's recent announcement that it will now accept iPods for free recycling at all of its stores in exchange for 10 percent off the purchase of a new iPod. Until June, organizations like the CTBC and the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition (SVTC) roundly denounced Apple for charging $100 to replace the battery in its highly successful mp3 players.

While Apple's latest attempt was seen as a small step toward greener pastures, it didn't assuage activist concerns. "We're glad to hear that Apple will accept its problematic iPods for free recycling," said Robin Schneider, vice-president of CTBC, "but we are calling on Mr. Jobs to offer free recycling for all of their old products."

Electronic waste, or e-waste, refers to all consumer electronic products that are ready to be discarded into the waste stream. Once these devices are deposited into landfills, toxic substances leach into the earth and into the water supply. According to a recent study from the Government Accountability Office, 50 million computers become outdated each year, and studies suggest that between 315 and 600 million desktop and laptop computers will soon be obsolete.

In its semiannual report [PDF] to Congress from November 2004, the Environmental Protection Agency concluded that the piles of e-waste are growing three times faster than normal municipal waste. Our ever-growing reliance on computers makes them particularly dangerous as e-waste, then, because their cathode ray tubes, circuit boards and monitors contain...