An Unknown killer - "E-WASTE"
- Imphal Times Editorial :: August 01 2018 -

We all have been talking about “ ENVIRONMENTAL Problems and Ecological Imbalance “like , Global warming, Water pollution, soil pollution , Air pollution , Noise pollution. Ozone layer depletion etc etc due to deforestation, Industrial influents, Industrial smoke, vehicular smoke and many other human activities.

YES ,now it has become a great threat to all the living and non-living components on the Earth.

In addition to these there is another new kind of threat to the Environment and biological components on the Earth, that is nothing but “E-WASTE”, which we common people never thought of it.

“E-Waste” is a popular, informal name for electronic product nearing the end of their useful life. E-waste are considered dangerous as certain components of some electronic product contains materials that are hazardous depending on their condition and density.

The hazardous contents of these materials pose a threat to human health and Environment. Discarded Computers, Televisions, VCRs, Stereos ,Copiers, Fax machines, electric lamp, Cell phones, audio equipment and batteries if improperly disposed can leach lead and other substances into soil and groundwater.

Many of these products can be reused, refurbished or recycled in an environmentally sound manner so that they are less harmful to the Eco-system.

These days computers and cell phones have become most common and widely used gadgets in all kinds of activities.

E-toxic components in these gadgets could be circuit containing heavy metals like lead and cadmium, batteries containing cadmium, cathode ray tubes with lead oxides and barium brominated flame retardants used on printed circuit boards (PCB), cables and plastic casing,polyvinyl chloride(PVC) coated copper cables and plastic computers casing that release highly toxic dioxins and furans when burnt to recover valuable metals, mercury switches, mercury in flat screens, polychlorinated biphenyl present in older capacitors transformers etc.

The hazardous contents of these materials pose an Environmental and health threat .

Thus proper management is necessary while disposing e-waste.

Specially, Manipur being a land lock state sill needs more careful as whatever e-waste disposed improperly will go to the Loktak Lake through water bodies falling in to it and it will boomerang to us through fishes caught from loktak.

I there foreappeal specially to our youths not to dispose E-waste improperly which are abundant in every families of Manipur.


Writer -Sanjenbam Jueshwor Singh