E Waste Case

E-waste Today we live a world very different from that of our grandparents. Technology has transformed our lives and our universe, increasing both communication and production. But despite the amazing advantages that technology has brought to us it has also created dangerous problems that our generation must face. Among the most fatal of these is the improper disposal of electronic waste. For this reason, my partner and I stand strongly Resolved: that the United States federal government should significantly reform its environmental policy. Before we jump into the meat of our case, let’s clear up some terms in…

Observation 1: Definitions Significant: "of a noticeably or measurably large amount" (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, 2009, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/significant) Reform: "to put or change into an improved form or condition" (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, 2009, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reform) Environmental Policy: "any actions deliberately taken - or not taken - by government that are aimed at managing human activities with a view to preventing harmful effects on nature and natural resources, and ensuring that man-made changes to the environment do not have a harmful effect on humans." (Environmental Policy in the European Union, 2001, John McCormick) E-waste Linda Luther (Environmental Policy Analyst for the Resources, Science, and Industry Division of the Congessional Research Service), August 29, 2007, "Managing Electronic Waste: An Analysis of State E-Waste Legislation_", http://www.classiccomputerrecovery.com/CRS_Ewaste8.29.07.pdf “There is no universally accepted definition of e-waste, but it generally refers to obsolete, broken, or irreparable electronic equipment such as televisions, computers and computer monitors, laptops, printers, cell phones, VCRs, DVD players, copiers, fax machines, stereos, and video gaming systems.” Next we would like to present…

Observation 2: Value and Criterion We would like to present you with the Value of Public health. To measure whether we have attained this goal to the best of our ability we will present the measuring stick, or Criterion, of Responsibility of Action.

Now let’s look at how things are in the Status Quo in…

Observation 3: Inherency 1. 20-50 million tons of E-waste per year CNN, August 10, 2009, "Sifting through the mounting problem of e-waste", http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/science/08/02/e-waste.recycling/index.html “According to the United Nations Environment Program around 20 to 50 million tons of e-waste are generated worldwide each year.” 2. Scientists agree: e-waste is toxic The Workshop in Applied Earth Systems Management (Team of graduate students at Columbia University lead by Professor Steve Cohen), August 18, 2006, "S 510: Electronic Waste Recycling Promotion and Consumer Protection Act_", http://www.columbia.edu/cu/mpaenvironment/pages/projects/summer06/ewastefinalRepo rt.pdf “It is generally agreed upon in the scientific community that e-waste contains potentially toxic compounds. Furthermore, the human health effects resulting from exposure to some of these toxins, such as lead, are well understood.” 3. 80% E-waste improperly disposed CNN, August 10, 2009, "Sifting through the mounting problem of e-waste", http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/science/08/02/e-waste.recycling/index.html “In 2008 a Greenpeace study, "Not in My Backyard", found that in Europe only 25 percent of the e-waste was recycled safely. In the U.S. it is only 20 percent and in developing countries it is less than one percent. Extrapolating out from these figures the report concluded that a massive 80 percent of e-waste generated worldwide is not properly recycled.”

4. Most e-waste is either in landfills or exported INTERPOL ((International Criminal Police Organization) a Prestigious organization founded in 1923 for facilitating international police cooperation.), May 2009, "Electronic Waste and Organized Crime", http://www.interpol.int/Public/ICPO/FactSheets/Wastereport.pdf “The disposal of these high-tech electronics is problematic. Each year almost 7 million tons of high-tech electronics become obsolete in the US (Grossman, 2006). The vast majority of e-waste from such products ends up in landfill, incinerators and ill equipped recycling facilities in developing nations.”

We see that out of the huge amounts of toxic e-waste produced each year, most of it is being improperly disposed either in landfills or by being exported to third world countries that cannot properly process it. Now let’s take a look at the problems this presents in…

Observation 4: Harms Our first harm is that pertaining to… 1. Exports A. Link: Much of e-waste is exported to third world countries according to an August 2009 CNN report… CNN, August 10, 2009, "Sifting through the mounting problem of e-waste", http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/science/08/02/e-waste.recycling/index.html “In 2008 a Greenpeace study, "Not in My Backyard", found that in Europe only 25 percent of the e-waste was recycled safely. In the U.S. it is only 20 percent and in developing countries it is less than one percent. Extrapolating out from these figures the report concluded that a massive 80 percent of e-waste generated worldwide is not properly recycled. Some is burnt in Western incinerators or buried in landfill sites. But much is exported to developing countries including India, China, Pakistan, Nigeria and Ghana. When it arrives, a further percentage may be repaired and sold on to populations desperate for affordable technology. But anything beyond the skills of local traders will end up dumped.”

Much of e-waste is export to third world countries, but we see further that… B. Brink: Most exports end up in dumps Nancy Weil (IDG News Service), October 31, 2005, "E-Waste Dumping Victimizes Developing Nations, Study Says", http://www.pcworld.com/article/123285/ewaste_dumping_victimizes_developing_nations _study_says.html “While all of the major U.S. PC vendors have recycling programs in place for used IT equipment, such products are often sold to brokers for disposal and wind up in countries such as Nigeria, but also elsewhere in Africa and in Asia. Some of the equipment is repaired or refurbished for use in those countries, becoming important components in bridging the "digital divide," but much of the gear -- up to 75 percent, according to some estimates -- is beyond repair and ends up in dumps or landfills.” Dumping massive amounts of toxic waste brings to our…

Impact: Human rights disaster Danielle Kurtzleben (Writer for IPS(Inter Press Service)), May 24, 2009, "TRADE-US: Green Groups Say E-Waste Bill Is Too Lax", http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp? idnews=46959 “The result is both an environmental and a human rights disaster. The exported waste sits in dumps until it is taken on by recycling operations. These operations can range from companies employing thousands to individuals with their own circuit-board smelting fires. Regardless of the method, the result is poisonous. The dismantling and burning of these products releases toxins such as mercury, lead, chromium, cadmium, and various chemical compounds found in plastics into the surroundings. This often results in unsafe drinking water, toxic soil, and increased rates of both cancer and miscarriages.” Our second harm is that pertaining to… 2. Landfills We saw how more than 80% of e-waste is improperly disposed of. Much of it is exported, the… Rest of the e-waste is in landfills(Link:) Linda Luther (Environmental Policy Analyst for the Resources, Science, and Industry Division of the Congessional Research Service), August 29, 2007, "Managing Electronic Waste: An Analysis of State E-Waste Legislation_", http://www.classiccomputerrecovery.com/CRS_Ewaste8.29.07.pdf “Further, in 2005 alone, EPA estimated that between 1.9 to 2.2 million tons of electronics became obsolete. Of that amount, between 1.5 to 1.9 million tons were discarded, primarily in landfills. Although EPA estimates that e-waste comprises about 2% of the municipal solid waste stream, it is anticipated that this percentage will grow as consumers continue to replace old and outdated electronic equipment and discard equipment in storage.” Now you might think that burial deep in the ground would be the perfect place for toxic waste, but we see that this isn’t true… Brink: E-waste in landfills dangerous – Both through toxins leaching into water and incineration. A Report from a Columbia University research team in 2006 says… The Workshop in Applied Earth Systems Management (Team of graduate students at Columbia University lead by Professor Steve Cohen), August 18, 2006, "S 510: Electronic Waste Recycling Promotion and Consumer Protection Act_", http://www.columbia.edu/cu/mpaenvironment/pages/projects/summer06/ewastefinalRepo rt.pdf

“The methods humans have developed for disposing of waste are imperfect and may result in detrimental effects to the environment and humans. When e-waste is disposed of in landfills, toxins can leach into groundwater or nearby water bodies. For instance, lead can leach from landfills into drinking water supplies, and mercury can leach into surrounding soils. Chromium may contaminate the environment through landfill leachate, and air contamination can occur when materials containing chromium are incinerated. Landfills and incineration are currently major exposure pathways for humans to the hazardous chemicals found in e-waste. Landfills are of particular concern since currently there are few other viable methods of disposal for most consumers. They face the choice of keeping the old computer indefinitely in a closet, or placing it in a landfill.” Burying tons of toxic e-waste in our landfills causes the following… Impact: Health risk INTERPOL ((International Criminal Police Orginization) a Prestigious orginization founded in 1923 for facilllitating international police cooperation.), May 2009, "Electronic Waste and Organized Crime", http://www.interpol.int/Public/ICPO/FactSheets/Wastereport.pdf “In addition to the human health consequences of high-tech e-waste, the environment is adversely affected when computer waste is landfilled or incinerated, it poses contamination problems in leaking to water sources and toxic air emissions.” In light of these massive problems we present…

Observation 5: The Plan Agency: Congress and the President. Enforcement: EPA, the Justice Department, Customs, and any other necessary federal agency. The plan is a little complicated, so let me summarize the mandates for you before we dive into the details. Basically the mandates are 1) Monitoring of all e-waste exports, 2) Ban exports of e-waste to unsafe locations, and 3) Ban unprocessed e-waste from being dumped in landfills. So now let’s dive into a more in depth look at the mandates: Mandate 1: a. EPA and Customs shall monitor all exports of e-waste. b. EPA shall create and maintain a list of countries with safe e-waste recycling practices. It shall be updated yearly, based on improvements and digressions of various countries in recycling e-waste. c. EPA shall add all harmful e-waste substances to a hazardous material list (according to the 2.5 page Basel Action Network’s list of hazardous materials, available upon request in CX).

Mandate 2: Ban all e-waste exports to: a. Any country that is not on the EPA’s list of safe recyclers b. Any country that bans the import of e-waste Mandate 3: a. E-waste may not be put in landfills, unless processed to remove all hazardous materials (according to EPA hazardous material list). b. $ 1 billion shall be allotted in loan guarantees for the construction of e-waste recycling facilities in the US. Funding: Any necessary costs will be covered by cuts in Fruit Fly Exclusion & Detection funds and the GFR (General Federal Revenue). Timeline: This plan will take effect immediately. The Affirmative team reserves the right to clarify this plan throughout the following debate round. This plan will bring about the following benefits in…

Observation 6: Advantages 1. Increased Public Health By ending both exports of e-waste to countries that cannot properly dispose of it and by prohibit the dumping of e-waste into landfills where it can pollute our water and air, we gain significantly increase the health of American citizens and people around the world. 2. Responsibility As a major exporter of something as deadly as e-waste, we have a great responsibility of where it ends up. By preventing the export to e-waste to countries where it will not be properly handled and recycled we take up Responsibility for our Actions. Judge, e-waste poses a major challenge to our generation. By enacting the Affirmative plan we will be taking the first step in the right direction. The health and life of Americans and of humanity around the world is in danger. Vote Affirmative for life and responsibility. I now stand open for cross-examination.