The positive aspect is that the total footprint is almost based on the production meaning that Apple is maximizing recycling goods and materials, and shipping without causing too large of a carbon footprint (Senthil & Sakthi, 2015).. However, one must wonder what new technology that they are using are production techniques can cause such a large percentage of carbon emissions. The answer is due to the polluting factories that Apple is forced to use in order to remain competitive. The cheap labour garnered is essential to Apple maintaining their competitive advantage and therefore don’t invest in better facilities and/or …show more content…
In terms of electronic waste, the amount of hazardous/toxins that are too easily contaminating our soil and water is estimated to be about 65,000 tons, which equates to the 140 million phones thrown into landfills in the United States of America every year. toxic materials may leak from decomposing wastes, causing an environmental hazard as the toxins seep into the ground and contaminate the soil (Senthil & Sakthi, 2015). The end result could be contaminating the food chain which would create immeasurable damage to the human population. An additional factor regarding mobiles phones unsustainability due to electronic waste is the fact that only 10% end up being recycled in their lifetime. The problem is that producers cannot salvage the precious metals and materials derived from cell phones such as the gold. Reclaiming the gold and other precious metals from old and broken mobile phones can reduce the amount mining