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Manufacturing 1 PC Takes 1.8 Tons Of Raw Material

Posted by timothy on from the inert-matter-transformed dept.

remy writes "Although most of it (1.5 metric tons) is water, a study from the United Nations University details the raw materials used in the manufacture of a PC and 17" CRT. That's an incredible environmental cost per PC, and a very strong argument for trying to leverage older equipment, not to mention upgrading rather than replacing."

10 of 687 comments (clear)

  1. Check out the Alameda Computer Resource Center by York+the+Mysterious · · Score: 5, Informative

    For anyone in the Bay Area you might want to the check out the Alameda Computer Resource Center (ACCRC). They recycle just about anything electronic, but they also load up Linux on old computers and give them to schools, non-profits, and developing nations. Very cool organization. Located in Berkeley. www.accrc.org

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    Tim Smith - Ramblings from Nerd Land
  2. Wake-on-LAN? by Some+Guy+in+Canada · · Score: 5, Informative

    From the article:
    "Too many computers at companies are prevented from entering their standby mode by LAN traffic, which keeps them awake and consuming power even while they are not in use, he said. ...Williams suggests redesigning network cards to allow the PC to go to sleep and then wake it should there be any important network traffic."

    Hasn't that already been done in the form of Wake-on-LAN?

    --
    "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." -Albert Einstein
  3. Re:Thirsty? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Actually, you should run the tap in any place with older plumbing. Some study showed that most of the lead leached into the standing water in the pipes is concentrated in the first water coming from the tap.

  4. It is a dilema by toesate · · Score: 5, Informative

    For me, it is a dilema. Between an upgrade, you get a more efficient hardware at similar price-energy ratio, thus more energy "friendly".

    But with these, you get headache junking old hardware, and suffocate our habitat.

    Consider this option, Computers for Africa

    A similar report on BBC, Computers 'must become greener

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  5. A PC uses more than ten times its weight in fossil by pg133 · · Score: 5, Informative

    The BBC is running a report from one of the UKs regional recycling centers

    "It says a PC uses more than ten times its weight in fossil fuels and chemicals to manufacture."

    "One of the ways of extending the life of a computer is to make it more easy to upgrade, rather than the current trend constantly replacing them for a better model as soon new versions become available."

  6. Re:Huh what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative
    Much more interesting than how many liters of waters go trough my plant is instead what contamination, if any, goes into the water before it's again released. In my example that amounts to "some amount of granite-dust which mostly settles in the pool before release, and ain't *that* dangerous to begin with".
    But don't forget that heat can be a contaminant. Water's ability to carry dissolved oxygen decreases significantly as its temperature increases. With your granite-cutting example this wouldn't be a problem (unless you were running hundreds of cutters, or a single monolithic one), but it's a real problem with power plants, which often use water from a nearby river or lake to run their turbines. Warming a river or lake only a few degrees can have a huge impact on the organisms that live within it, due to the decrease in available oxygen.
  7. Re:Huh what? by haruchai · · Score: 5, Informative

    We're not talking about doing the dishes here - the manufacture of microprocessors require huge amounts of water to wash the residue off of the wafers during the photolithography process.
    Like darkroom photography, this involves the use of potentially noxious chemicals.
    Now, the report is quite sketchy on what all that water is used for and that is, IMO, a glaring omission. But, suffice to say that the water leaving a chip fab probably won't be classed as safe drinking water.
    Here are some links:
    http://www.svtc.org/media/articles/2003/benzene_ny t_1117.htm
    http://home.aigonline.com/AIGEnvironmental/ind_pro file/read_profile/1,1990,NDUtL0FJR0Vudmlyb25tZW50Y WwvSW5kdXN0cnlfSXNzdWVzLUluZHVzdHJpZXMgd2l0aCBFbnZ pcm9ubWVudGFsIElzc3Vlcw==,00.html

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  8. Re:While I like the message... by Ed_Moyse · · Score: 5, Informative
    240 kg is not 1/4 of a tonne



    A metric ton - which is what he explicitly said - is 1000kg. So 240kg is near as dammit 1/4 of a ton.

  9. Re:While I like the message... by jellomizer · · Score: 5, Informative

    It is too bad. That every New PC I find uses more power then my old one.
    My 486 150watt Power Supply
    My P200 250watt Power Supply
    A P4 350watt Power Supply

    Unless you upgrade from a PC to a laptop you don't really have a a good saving in power.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
  10. Tonnes by Becquerel · · Score: 5, Informative

    1m^3 has a mass of exactly 1 Tonne (Metric) by definition

    1m^3 = 1.102 Short (US) Tons

    1m^3 = 0.984 Long (Old UK) Tons

    I'm amazed to see ppl on /. surprised at the weight of water. Over here in Europe where we use the metric system it's common knowledge 1000Kg=1Tonne=1m^3 as it's so easy to remember.

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