Saving precious elements: hearing from the experts
On 20 November, a large audience gathered in the impressive theatre at the Royal Institution, for a discussion about precious elements in our technology.
The discussion was chaired by BBC Science Correspondent Victoria Gill, and the panellists were experts from a range of disciplines.
Professor Andrea Sella, from University College London, has worked with 50 or 60 elements over the course of his career. He spoke about the billions of years of "slow chemistry" that has gone into making the elements that we depend on.
Professor Margaret Bates, Professor of Sustainable Wastes Management at the University of Northampton, described herself as "obsessed with waste management", and highlighted the fact that e-waste is the fastest growing waste stream on the planet.
"Our approach to tech is weird", she said. “We don’t think about what we’re buying, and we don’t have responsibility for what we’re buying." She emphasised the need for systems where people can trade in their old appliances for recycling when they purchase new ones.
Dr Tim Gabriel, Lecturer in Chemical Science at Manchester Metropolitan University, also spoke passionately about the precious materials in technology, and the need to design more environmentally-friendly devices.
Finally we heard from Janet Gunter, Co-founder of The Restart Project, which helps people learn how to repair their broken electronics. She emphasised that whilst we are consuming too much, we should be careful not to place blame on the consumer.
"The problem is a throwaway economy, not throwaway culture", she said. "Our deep psychological tendencies are being manipulated to consume." Her organisation empowers people to understand more about where their products come from, and consume less overall.
Volunteers from the Restart Project were on hand after the event. One of them, Philip, has been volunteering with the project since he retired five years ago.
"I've always liked taking things apart, and seeing what's inside and how they work – I've always had an inquisitive streak like that. Anything that’s got screws – I’m tempted to take them out and see what's inside. And if I can put it together in a better working state than I took it apart, then that's incredible."
He said that many devices are much more repairable than we think, but there are challenges, particularly with certain brands – some use glues to make their devices almost impossible to take apart. "Airpods are absolutely impossible to repair because you have to destroy them to get into them."
Towards the end of the discussion, audience members were encouraged to ask questions. "I think people get quite impassioned about these things", said Victoria Gill, "about their ability to repair their stuff. People want to not be part of the problem. Because they do see that we’re throwing a lot of these quite valuable materials away, and they want to not do that."
In August, Victoria broke the news of our nationwide survey, which revealed there could be as many as 40 million unused devices in the UK alone. She says the story received a big response.
"A lot of people got in touch because they wanted to know how we recycle this stuff – what’s the best thing to do. These items are becoming so much integrated into our lives, and I think people were quiet concerned about that.
"I think we're definitely still more questions than answers. Janet had some really interesting points about how really regulation has to be the answer, and how a lot of the big corporations that are making our technology quite resistant to that regulation. If we're going to put some kind of a limit of the amount of indium that a company can use in its materials – rather than just say you can use as much as you want as long as you're paying for it – then that's possibly going to be a more speedy solution to this problem."
Find out more about our precious elements research, and what you can do to help, on our webpage.
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