在這個所有東西快速更替的時代,你知道你用完的電器產品都去了哪裡呢?電器產品的終點並不是垃圾桶、垃圾車、或是家裡附近的回收場,而是…
![Polluted: 'Millions of tonnes' of the world's e-waste ends up in Africa where it is dumped in landfills like Agbogbloshie (pictured) in Ghana's capital Accra](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FE3800000578-3049457-Polluted_Millions_of_tonnes_of_the_world_s_e_waste_ends_up_in_Af-a-43_1429747413588.jpg)
在西非的電器產品墳場每年都會有來自世界各地、百萬公噸的廢棄器材。據稱,數以千記的廢棄電視、電腦、微波爐、冰箱等,就這樣非法地被送往非洲各國,然後丟到巨型的垃圾場,如同迦納的阿博布羅西 (Agbogbloshie),就是個極為著名的垃圾墳場。
![Damaging: The mountains of 'e-waste' that builds up in landfill sites such as Agbogbloshie (pictured) pollutes the local water and harms the health of the scavengers whose livelihoods depend on these broken goods](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FE3E00000578-3049457-Damaging_The_mountains_of_e_waste_that_builds_up_in_landfill_sit-a-64_1429747413866.jpg)
垃圾之所以送往這些落後國家,是因為比較起成本,與其在該國回收再利用,不如直接送往落後國家還較為省錢。
![Health: The toxins leaking from discarded appliances in Accra's Agbogbloshie landfill could be causing irreparable harm to the young men (pictured) who scavenge through the site](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FE1400000578-3049457-Health_The_toxins_leaking_from_discarded_appliances_in_Accra_s_A-a-58_1429747413617.jpg)
根據聯合國大學統計,全球在2014年就製造了4100萬公噸、價值超過1.5兆台幣 (£340億英鎊) 的電子產品廢棄物。最終,也只有600萬公噸的電子產品有被妥善回收。
![Defunct: Shipping broken or unusable equipment (pictured) to Africa is illegal under the Basel convention, according to the Head of United Nations University (UNU)](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FDAB00000578-3049457-Defunct_Shipping_broken_or_unusable_equipment_pictured_to_Africa-a-65_1429747413916.jpg)
在所有廢棄物當中,德國丟棄的佔其中最大宗,第二順位則是英國,而非洲各國加起來則佔最少,但依然成為全球電子廢棄物的墳場。
![Pollution: Brokers manage to ship containers of illegal e-waste (pictured) to the continent by fraudulently categorising it as 'reusable'](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FDF400000578-3049457-Pollution_Brokers_manage_to_ship_containers_of_illegal_e_waste_p-a-44_1429747413590.jpg)
這些電子廢棄物當中,依然還有會傷害環境的重金屬,如鉛或是汞。除了傷害環境以外,一樣會傷害那些在垃圾場當中四處遊盪、找垃圾去賣的年輕人。若這些重金屬流入當地的水源地,下場也可能會造成嚴重的精神障礙或疾病。
![Dangerous: Young men sift through the mountains of scraps in landfills like Agbogbloshie (pictured), hoping to find something worth selling in local markets](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FDFC00000578-3049457-Dangerous_Young_men_sift_through_the_mountains_of_scraps_in_land-a-63_1429747413690.jpg)
這些圖片都是由反電子廢棄物的環保組織QAMP所拍攝,赤裸地揭露了阿博布羅西成堆全球廢棄物的殘酷畫面,這些污染會滲入空氣、水源、甚至是當地的蔬果等食物當中。
![Aid: UNU believes legal shipments of electronic appliances can help people in Africa who burn components (pictured) to extract scrap metal which they can sell](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FDA300000578-3049457-Aid_UNU_believes_legal_shipments_of_electronic_appliances_can_he-a-46_1429747413594.jpg)
照片中,年輕的居民們在垃圾堆中翻找、甚至焚燒廢棄物來取得可以販賣的金屬原料,來掙那十分微薄的錢。
![Profit: Locals in Ghana's capital Accra intercept trucks carrying the discarded products and buy the products without testing them - to later sell them in the city's market (pictured)](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FDDC00000578-3049457-Profit_Locals_in_Ghana_s_capital_Accra_intercept_trucks_carrying-a-49_1429747413600.jpg)
當一批批龐大廢棄物來到迦納還有奈及利亞的時候,會經由卡車來將所有廢棄物載往偏遠的地區。而這垃圾量也不停地增加,原因也相當簡單,就是因為「經濟」和「金融」的發展。
![Danger: Young men brave toxic fumes and explosive appliances in Agbogbloshie (pictured), in what one local journalist calls 'the chaotic heart of one of west Africa's biggest economies'](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FE0300000578-3049457-Danger_Young_men_brave_toxic_fumes_and_explosive_appliances_in_A-a-56_1429747413614.jpg)
就以歐盟還有英國來說,在該地回收的費用較高,所以這些垃圾都會被轉往非洲,畢竟當地的人還會「花錢」買下這些垃圾。
![Victim: Ghana produced only 38,000 metric tonnes of e-waste in 2014 compared to the UK's 1.5 million but its landfills have become a graveyard for the world's useless microchips, light bulbs and motherboards (pictured)](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FDBB00000578-3049457-Victim_Ghana_produced_only_38_000_metric_tonnes_of_e_waste_in_20-a-51_1429747413604.jpg)
拍下這些圖片的攝影師也表示,她看見了當地的年輕人,其中甚至有14歲的小男孩,冒著有毒煙霧和爆炸的危險在挖掘廢棄物,而她也認為這是「西非最大的經濟來源之一」。
![Inexpensive: Even old wiring is dumped in Agbogbloshie (pictured) because it is cheaper to ship them to Africa than it is to recycle it in European Union nations](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FE5600000578-3049457-Inexpensive_Even_old_wiring_is_dumped_in_Agbogbloshie_pictured_b-a-52_1429747413606.jpg)
去年度的電子產品廢棄物,就可以裝滿110萬台18輪大卡車,可以從紐約一路排到東京再回來。其中,也只有6分之1的廢棄物有被妥善回收。
![Dumped: E-waste graveyards in Africa (pictured) are damaging the health of the scavengers and the local environment, according to a United Nations University report](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FD9F00000578-3049457-Dumped_E_waste_graveyards_in_Africa_pictured_are_damaging_the_he-a-53_1429747413608.jpg)
![Desperate: Local Ghanaian's sift through mounds of old chargers in the hope that some of the still work and can be sold at market](http://teepr.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/27D5FDD800000578-3049457-Desperate_Local_Ghanaian_s_sift_through_mounds_of_old_chargers_i-a-60_1429747413621.jpg)
來源:Daily Mail
生於這個消費的時代,其實很多時候,我們都已經習慣大量消費的習慣了。因為商品不斷推陳出新,所以我們認為舊產品就是落伍。因為東西被製造得容易損壞,所以我們一下子就得換新產品。因為什麼都用過即丟,所以我們老是有新的東西可以把玩。
我們從小都被教導「環保3R」:Reduce (減少使用)、Reuse (重複再用)、Recycle (循環再造),然而,看到這樣的光景,我們大概都知道,這個時代中,最重要的終究是「減少使用」。這麼重要的保護地球知識,請分享出去讓所有人知道!
(往下還有更多精彩文章!)