A new study reveals that the key to decarbonization might be hiding among junk drawers across the United Kingdom, per a recent article published in Euronews.
Copper is an infinitely recyclable metal used to generate electricity from solar, wind, hydroelectric, and geothermal energy sources. Often known as the "metal of the energy transition," copper is essential in supplying clean power.
However, as Europe strives toward decarbonization, there is a major copper gap. The demand for copper outweighs the current supply. According to a Bloomberg Intelligence report, by 2033, there will be a "copper gap" of 6.5 million tonnes (over 7 million tons).
Researchers have found a surprising solution that can help reduce the current copper gap.
Material Focus, a nonprofit dedicated to recycling e-waste, conducted a study and found that the U.K. alone has €316 million worth of copper hiding in junk drawers. All that copper is a result of the staggering number of unused and broken tech items lying around most homes.
Currently, unwanted e-waste sitting in U.K. households contains 38,449 tons of copper. That's enough copper to build 1,240 Statues of Liberty.
Recycled copper from e-waste can help countries generate clean energy and meet their decarbonization goals.
"All the shallow, easy-to-extract copper deposits have been mined out," Grant Sporre, Bloomberg Intelligence's Global Head of Metals and Mining, told Euronews. "Increasing the proportion of recycled copper to 50 percent from current levels of 30 percent could potentially meet the additional demand."
Material Focus is helping to increase the amount of e-waste recycled in an effort to preserve precious resources, such as copper. Through educational outreach and recycling projects, Material Focus is inspiring the public to recycle their e-waste while making it easier for them to do so.
As more individuals learn how to safely recycle their e-waste, they can clean out their junk drawers and declutter their homes. Recycling your e-waste also helps to generate more clean energy, which can help decrease your utility bills and reduce the amount of harmful pollutants entering the environment.
"Upping secondary sourcing of copper through recycling is a really important route towards greater supply security," Izzi Monk, a policy adviser for the environment at the Royal Society of Chemistry, told Euronews.
Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the latest innovations improving our lives and shaping our future, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
