Ｔｈｅ　Ｐｒｏｂｌｅｍ　ｏｆ　Ｅ－Ｗａｓｔｅ.docVIP

Ｔｈｅ　Ｐｒｏｂｌｅｍ　ｏｆ　Ｅ－Ｗａｓｔｅ 　　As one of the world’s major IT products manufacturers, 　　China is also faced with the growing problem of recycling 　　and treating electronic waste. 　　BEFORE Xu Feng sold his old personal computer to a mobile scrap collector, he called Dell’s recycling hotline. Since the end of 2006, Dell has run a recycling service for both corporate and private users. When he was told Dell could “collect his computer within a week, but wouldn’t provide any recompense,” Xu decided to sell it to a mobile scrap collector for RMB 200. 　　Xu’s story points to a fundamental problem with China’s E-waste recycling industry. Despite the immense amount of electronic waste being generated in China, “official” recycling operations simply don’t receive enough material to make recycling a profitable business. Instead, 90 percent of China’s electronic waste goes to family workshops, whose manual dismantling practices create highly toxic secondary pollution. 　　Accelerating technological redundancy turnaround times are making the waste problem ever worse. Based on CBC Market Research’s latest survey of the urban cell phone market, over 60 percent of China’s legion of mobile users have replaced their phones at least once. Replacement frequency is the highest in Guangzhou, where users have gone through an average of three phones each. Data from Searchina Co., Ltd. shows that in Shanghai, cell phones are now replaced on average every two to three years. For some “fashionistas,” keeping a phone for less than 12 months is not uncommon. 　　This cycle of consumption is generating astronomical amounts of electronic garbage. According to statistics from the State Environmental Protection Administration of China, every year the nation throws away a staggering 30 million cell phones. Added to these are 4 million refrigerators, and 5 million each of TV sets, washing machines and PCs. China’s daily electronic waste output adds up to some 3,000 tons. In addition to this domestic gar