Disposing of e-waste
Singaporeans churn out 60 million kg of electronic waste (e-waste) every year, according to the National Environment Agency (NEA). But only a fraction of e-waste is disposed properly or recycled. The amount of e-waste is also increasing because of the relatively short lifespan of electronic gadgets.
Items that can be recycled include CDs/DVDs, mobile phones, keyboards, laptops and lithium-ion batteries.
To address this, NEA is considering a regulated national system to collect, recycle and manage e-waste. But this is unlikely to be implemented soon.
Those who would like to recycle their e-waste can turn to a number of e-waste recycling programmes organised by companies such as StarHub and Singtel. StarHub’s RENEW (REcycling Nation’s Electronic Waste) has 235 e-waste recycling bins at 185 locations around the island; Singtel also has a similar e-waste recycling programme, with recycling bins located at Singtel shops at ComCentre, Tampines Mall, West Mall and Jurong Point.
You can also drop off your e-waste at Funan Digitalife Mall’s Customer Service Counter at Level 1. But take note that the mall will close for redevelopment from Jun 30.
Read about other recycling initiatives at the NEA website.
By Vincent Chang, The Straits Times, 11 April 2016
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