電子垃圾

顏丹丹

編者注：電子垃圾，是指被廢棄不再使用的電器或電子設(shè)備，主要包括電冰箱、空調(diào)、洗衣機(jī)、電視機(jī)、電腦和手機(jī)等電子科技的淘汰品。電子垃圾的成分復(fù)雜，其中半數(shù)以上的材料對人體有害，有一些甚至是劇毒的。比如，一臺電腦有700多個元件，其中有一半元件含有汞、砷、鉻等各種有毒化學(xué)物質(zhì)；電視機(jī)、電冰箱、手機(jī)等電子產(chǎn)品也都含有鉛、鉻、汞等重金屬；激光打印機(jī)和復(fù)印機(jī)中含有碳粉等。電子廢棄物被填埋或者焚燒時，其中的重金屬滲入土壤，會污染河流和地下水；有機(jī)物經(jīng)過焚燒，釋放出大量的有害氣體……電子垃圾需要謹(jǐn)慎處理，在一些發(fā)展中國家，電子垃圾的現(xiàn)象十分嚴(yán)重，造成的環(huán)境污染威脅著當(dāng)?shù)鼐用竦纳眢w健康。

South Korea is dealing with increasing amounts of waste from electronic devices. These useless or unwanted parts are often called “e-waste”.

韓國正在處理日益增多的電子設(shè)備垃圾。這些沒用或不需要的部件通常稱為“電子垃圾”。

Tons of old computers， telephones and other electronic devices are often taken to landfills and buried under the ground.

大量的舊電腦、舊手機(jī)及其他電子設(shè)備通常被運到垃圾填埋場并埋在地底下。

Now， some local governments in South Korea are promoting special e-waste recycling programs. The city of Seoul throws out about 10 tons of e-waste each year. About 20 percent of that goes to the Seoul Resource Center. There， electronic devices are taken apart so that valuable metals can be extracted and reused. South Korean officials say metal extraction1 is a $3.8 billion-dollar industry.

如今，一些韓國當(dāng)?shù)卣谕苿与娮永h(huán)利用的項目。首爾每年丟棄約10噸電子垃圾。其中約有百分之二十的電子垃圾被運到首爾資源中心。這里將拆分電子設(shè)備，提取有用的金屬并再利用。韓國官員稱金屬提取是價值38億美元的產(chǎn)業(yè)。

Reusing electronic parts is not only about earning profits， but also to protect the environment. About 90 percent of what is brought to the center will be used on other products.

再利用電子部件并非只是從中獲利，目的還在于保護(hù)環(huán)境。百分之九十左右的電子垃圾將會用于其他產(chǎn)品。

The increase of e-waste is not only a concern in South Korea. The United Nations says millions of tons of e-waste end up in developing countries. Toxic2 materials can create a severe health risk to the local population.

擔(dān)憂電子垃圾增加的不僅是韓國。聯(lián)合國稱發(fā)展中國家堆積了數(shù)百萬噸電子垃圾，有毒物質(zhì)將對當(dāng)?shù)厝说慕】禈?gòu)成嚴(yán)重威脅。

Recycling is also about protecting personal information from attack.

循環(huán)利用也可使個人信息免遭攻擊。

But some environmental groups say not enough is being done to limit the amount of electronics sent to landfills. South Koreans keep buying more and more electronic products. Only about 21 percent of the countrys total e-waste gets properly recycled.

但是一些環(huán)保組織稱限制電子垃圾送往填埋區(qū)的努力還不夠。韓國人不斷購買越來越多的電子產(chǎn)品，電子垃圾總量中僅有約百分之二十一得以合理的循環(huán)利用。

The average South Korean buys a new mobile phone every 18 months. Companies offer special deals to buy new products. Consumer behavior is a big reason why old mobile phones continue to appear at the recycling center. But some people are doing their part to reduce that. One of them says， “I have had this same phone for 10 years. It is what I can do to help conserve our natural resources.”

韓國人平均每18個月購買一部新手機(jī)，購買新產(chǎn)品公司會提供特別優(yōu)惠。消費者的行為是舊手機(jī)不斷出現(xiàn)在循環(huán)利用中心的最主要原因。不過有些人正盡力做到減少更換手機(jī)。有人說：“我用同一個手機(jī)已經(jīng)10年之久。這是我為保護(hù)自然資源所能做到的。”