Report: US 'E-Waste Brokers' Are Overwhelming SE Asia

Millions of tons of discarded electronics from the US are being shipped overseas, much of it to developing countries in Southeast Asia unprepared to safely handle hazardous waste, per a new report. Environmental watchdog Basel Action Network said a two-year investigation found at least 10 US companies exporting used electronics to Asia and the Middle East, in what it says is a "hidden tsunami" of electronic waste, per the AP.

• Rapid growth: Electronic waste includes discarded devices like phones and computers containing both valuable materials and toxic metals like lead, cadmium, and mercury. As gadgets are replaced faster, global e-waste is growing five times quicker than it's formally recycled.

• Numbers: The world produced a record 62 million metric tons in 2022. That's expected to climb to 82 million by 2030, according to the UN's International Telecommunication Union and research arm UNITAR. The report estimates that between January 2023 and February 2025, the companies involved exported more than 10,000 containers of potential e-waste valued at $1 billion-plus. Industrywide, such trade could top $200 million a month.
• US culpability: About 2,000 containers—roughly 36,000 tons—of used electronics leave US ports every month, per the report. It said the companies behind the shipments, described as "e-waste brokers," typically don't recycle the waste themselves but send it to companies in developing nations.
• Countries: "Malaysia suddenly became this mecca of junk," said BAN's Jim Puckett. Containers were also sent to Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and the UAE, despite bans under the Basel Convention and national laws, the report added.

• Toxic chemicals: Much of the e-waste is dumped in landfills, leaching toxic chemicals into the environment. Some ends up in informal scrapyards, where workers burn or dismantle devices by hand, often without protection, releasing toxic fumes.
• Companies: Firms identified in the report include Attan Recycling, Corporate eWaste Solutions, Creative Metals Group, EDM, First America Metal Corp., GEM Iron and Metal Inc., Greenland Resource, IQA Metals, PPM Recycling, and Semsotai. Six of the companies didn't immediately respond to requests for comment. One of the firms that did, Semsotai, said it doesn't export scrap, only working components for reuse, and accused BAN of bias.
• Lingering questions: Eight of the 10 identified companies hold R2v3 certifications—an industry standard meant to ensure electronics are recycled safely and responsibly, raising questions about the value of such a certification.

More here.