United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2005-07-26 monographic deposited born digital 22 p. GA 1.13:GAO-05-937T https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-05-937T P0b002ee180384b16 f:d05937t DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-GAO-05-937T machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-05-937T GAO-05-937T Cost analysis Electronic equipment Environmental monitoring Environmental policies Recycling Toxic substances Waste disposal Environmental protection EPA Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool Testimony A31377 Advances in technology have led to rapidly increasing sales of new electronic devices, particularly televisions, computers, and computer monitors. With this increase comes the dilemma of how to manage these products when they come to the end of their useful lives. Concerns have been increasingly expressed that while millions of existing computers become obsolete each year, only a fraction of them are being recycled. Some have alleged that the disposal of used electronics causes a number of environmental problems. They note, for example, that toxic substances such as lead can leach from used electronics. They have also noted that computers and other electronic equipment contain precious metals that require substantial amounts of energy and land to extract. These metals, they say, can often be extracted with less environmental impact from used electronics than from the environment. In this testimony, GAO summarizes existing information on the amounts of, and problems associated with, used electronics. GAO also examines the factors affecting the nation's ability to recycle and reuse electronics when such products have reached the end of their useful lives. This testimony discusses preliminary results of GAO's work. GAO will report in full at a later date. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-05-937T/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-05-937T.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-05-937T/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-05-937T.pdf GAO-05-937T https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-05-937T Testimony GAO-05-937T; Electronic Waste: Observation on the Role of the Federal Government in Encouraging Recycling and Reuse; Cost analysis Electronic equipment Environmental monitoring Environmental policies Recycling Toxic substances Waste disposal Environmental protection EPA Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool