Moore’s law says that the power of computer processors doubles roughly every 2 years. Intel and AMD love that because it means that we have to replace our computers often. What happens to all those old PC’s that we throw away? It seems there is a good chance that they are shipped to China!

ForeignPolicy.com have a cool photo essay on the subject. From the article:

“Each year, between 20 and 50 million tons of electronic waste is generated globally. Most of it winds up in the developing world. It can be 10 times cheaper for a “recycler” to ship waste to China than to dispose of it properly at home.”

These guys don’t just dump the old hardware, they also scour it for valuable parts.

“Computers are much more than just wires and plastic; they are also a source of highly valuable metals, including gold, copper, and aluminum. One ton of computer scrap contains more gold than 17 tons of gold ore. Circuit boards can be 40 times richer in copper than typical copper ore.”