E-Waste Is Filling Up Landfills. Here's How to Reduce It

(Bloomberg) — Kyle Wiens tries to avoid giving gifts he can't make himself. The chief executive officer of repair business iFixit crafts his own Christmas ornaments, cutting boards and picture frames, and he'd take a nice bottle of whiskey any day over "some electronic gizmo that's going to go in the drawer," he says.

His online shop of parts, tools and free repair guides has been in the business of helping people fix electronics for the past two decades.

The world generated 62 billion kilograms (137 billion pounds) of electronic waste in 2022 and properly recycled less than a quarter of it, according to the United Nations Institute for Training and Research. The total could fill enough 40-metric-ton trucks to encircle the equator. Waste of all kinds tends to swell during the holiday season, but refurbished goods can go a long way in reducing the amount that ends up in landfills.

Black Friday was the busiest day ever for Back Market, while trade-ins have grown 35% year-over-year, according to Thibaud Hug de Larauze, CEO of the  Paris-based company that sells refurbished tech from iPhones to gaming consoles.

Most customers are driven there for a bargain, though, Hug de Larauze says. Back Market sells a 128-gigabyte iPhone 14 for $408, for example, while Apple's brand-new version goes for $599.

Related:E-Waste 101: How to Recycle IT Equipment & Reduce Impact

That financial incentive is something other sustainability companies are trying to tap into as well. The recycling rewards startup Trashie recently added an e-waste vertical. People can pay between $20 and $25 for a box where they ship old electronics — laptops, chargers, digital cameras — to Trashie, which will wipe the data and recycle the material. In exchange, customers get rewards points they can use for discounts on products elsewhere.

"It's always tricky for people at a time like this when we're being inundated with more, more, more," said Kristy Caylor, Trashie's CEO. To avoid accumulating waste in the first place, she says she prefers gifting either books or experiences.

Those who don't want to pay for e-waste disposal can often turn to local organizations. In California, San Jose Conservation Corps collects electronic waste from people's porches.  It picks up around 11% of its annual total in January, one of its busiest months.

"There are a lot of electronics being thrown away in perfect condition," said Mario Pichardo, who is the director of an e-waste collection program run by the conservation group. People "want something cooler or newer."