#ZeroWasteAotearoa - Mine #EWaste for #gold, not beautiful landscapes

February 16, 2026

​"As a fast-track consent is sought for a major gold mine in #CentralOtago and another has already been granted in #Coromandel, #ZeroWaste #Aotearoa is calling upon the government to mine #ElectronicWaste, not beautiful landscapes, for gold and other precious metals.

"E-waste contains a significant concentration of gold, with one metric tonne of electronic waste containing up to 800 times more gold than a tonne of mined ore. While precious metals (including gold, silver, copper) make up approximately 60% of the composition of some e-waste, gold specifically is highly concentrated, with a single tonne of circuit boards containing roughly 39 grams of gold.

"#NewZealand currently generates 99,000 tonnes of e-waste every single year. Approximately 98 percent ends up in landfill or is disposed of illegally, according to the Ministry for the Environment.

" 'At present the voluntary product stewardship scheme means that we have one of the lowest rates of e-waste recovery in the world. We are literally throwing gold away into landfills while proposing to dig it up elsewhere in some of the country’s most beautiful landscapes. It is the height of madness,' says Sue Coutts of Zero Waste Aotearoa.

" 'Like many people across the country, we are gravely concerned about the environmental impact of gold mining. We think that there are much better ways to get these valuable resources – and ensure that they stay in circulation forever, not dumped in landfills.'

" 'The World Gold Council says that only 7% of gold is used in tech but 27% of worldwide gold production is already from recycling. This is more than 4 times what we need for tech – there is no valid reason to dig up any more of our precious #ecosystems.'

" '#ProductStewardship would create a pathway for a new industry: one built on resource recovery of valuable materials and a #CircularEconomy.

"NZ company #MINTInnovation relocated to #Sydney because they could tap into flows of e-waste from extended producer responsibility schemes that collect electronic waste in #Australia .

"They chose not to invest in NZ because there is no regulated e-waste scheme here. That’s $60m in turnover that will be dropping into the Australian economy every year instead of ours.

"E-waste was declared a priority product in June 2020 requiring the establishment of a regulated product stewardship scheme under the #WasteMinimisationAct. Yet six years on, a mandatory scheme is not in place and no further work is being done.

"Electronic waste, or e-waste, includes discarded electronic devices such as smartphones, computers, and televisions. E-waste is a rich source of precious metals and #RareEarth elements, including gold, #silver, #platinum, and #palladium, used in #CircuitBoards and components."

Source:
https://zerowaste.co.nz/media-statement-mine-e-waste-for-gold-not-beautiful-landscapes/

#SolarPunkSunday #NoGoldMining #EWasteRecycling #MetalsExtraction #Electronics

Startups are raking in up to $85,000 per day by recycling #gold and #copper from #electronics thrown in the trash — #EWaste 'gold mining' efforts are expanding

By Aaron Klotz
published January 31, 2024

The e-waste recycling boom is upon us.

"Did you know that the materials inside your old, outdated TV, laptop, desktop, and other electronic devices contain precious metals such as gold and copper? According to Business Insider, small startups are cashing in on the untapped potential of the e-waste industry, making as much as $85,000 per day #recycling old electronic #CircuitBoards. The initiatives will also likely continue to expand — worldwide, there's a projected $55-$60 billion worth of precious metals inside abandoned circuit boards just waiting to be collected.

"E-waste is quickly becoming one of the biggest #environmental #hazards affecting our world today. More than 50 million tons of electronics get tossed in the trash, with much of that garbage being sent to third-world countries (most notably #India) for recycling. It's an environmental nightmare that's projected to become substantially worse over the next decade due to our insatiable desire for new #phones, #laptops, #gaming #PCs, #TVs, and anything that requires electricity to run.

"On top of this, much of our e-waste doesn't get recycled at all, being left to rot in garages, #landfills, and city streets. The United States alone only collects about 15% of all the e-waste for recycling that its citizens create on a daily basis.

"The flip side to this situation is that e-waste is simultaneously becoming one of the most underrated 'gold mines' of the modern era, thanks to all of the valuable metals housed inside most circuit boards. Worldwide, there's a projected $55-$60 billion worth of precious metals inside abandoned circuit boards just waiting to be collected.

"Business Insider followed several scrappers and a small startup in Sydney, #Australia, to see how much income these smaller entities can make from recycling e-waste. It found that solo scrappers can't make a full-time income out of e-waste yet, but scrappers who work in larger organizations, particularly organizations / startups with access to heavy machinery, can generate some serious income.

"One such startup that Business Insider interviewed was #MintInnovation. Scrappers who find e-waste and drop it off at Mint Innovation can make as much as several thousand dollars per load. Mint Innovation has virtually mastered the art of metal extraction from e-waste, utilizing tons of special machines and a secret special sauce designed to break down electronic circuit boards and separate the valuable metals inside from unwanted plastics and other materials the metals are attached to.

"The fully automated setup Mint Innovation has built can generate an impressive $85,000 of income per day from the raw metals it collects from e-waste. That translates into about $30 million in income per year.

"Mint Innovation perfectly demonstrates the amount of potential income the e-waste industry can access right now. The problem, however, is that there is not a lot of infrastructure dedicated to e-waste processing, making it difficult for e-waste scavengers to make a livable income. That could easily change in the future, as e-waste pollution continues to rise and more entrepreneurs understand the income potential e-waste can generate.

"If you want to take a crack at recycling your own e-waste, we made a fun tutorial several years ago to teach you the basics.

Source::

https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/cpus/startups-are-raking-in-up-to-dollar85000-per-day-by-recycling-gold-and-copper-from-electronics-thrown-in-the-trash-e-waste-gold-mining-efforts-are-expanding

How to:
https://www.tomshardware.com/picturestory/550-gold-motherboard-chemistry.html

#LessMining #MoreRecycling
#RightToRepair #LithiumMining #CopperMining #Reuse #Recycle #ReduceReuseRecycle