A growing sector of recycling in the last ten years has been e-waste. E-waste is any material taken from technologies such as laptops, desktops, and gaming systems. At Second Street Iron & Metal, we accept mostly batteries from e-waste.

Japan continues to be on one of the largest consumers of e-waste in the global recycling market. For 2018 they have pledged to recover up to eight tons of metals & batteries from electronic gadgets and consumer goods. Japan continues to make noise in the global recycling community as they prepare for the 2020 Olympic Games. They plan to use e-waste produce 5,000 gold, silver, & bronze medals for the games, according to a press release on the Olympic Games website.

This project brings a spotlight into a growing e-waste concern for the planet. In Asia, researchers predict that the volume of e-waste is increasing by 63% over the last 5 years.

If you have old batteries laying around your organization and are looking for a safe and responsible way to get rid of them, contact Second Street Iron & Metal. Who knows, maybe it could be turned into a gold medal in the next Olympic Games!