When it comes to consumer technology, Australia is generally months behind the rest of the world. When a new gadget arrives here in Australia, the rest of the world has generally forgotten all about it.
Well, according to News.com.au, there’s now another technology we’re behind the rest of the world in: dealing with e-waste. Apparently we are “coming last” when it comes to recycling and reusing our old technology, and the government’s dragging its heels when it comes to coming up with any meaningful legislation to improve the situation.
Most disappointing though is that most of the western world still believes that dealing with e-waste is as simple as shipping old mobile phones and CRT TVs to third world countries – places like Delhi and Nigeria – so they can disassemble them. The problem is that they have no means for protection against all the toxic substances inside our gadgets, and when these substances are released, they generally end up poisoning someone or something.
Hit the link for the full article – it’s a cause for great concern for any real gadget fan in Australia.