“Electronic waste” or “E-Waste” may be defined as discarded computers, office electronic equipment, entertainment device electronics, mobile phones, television sets, and refrigerators.

This includes used electronics which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling, or disposal. Others are re-usables (working and repairable electronics) and secondary scrap (copper, steel, plastic, etc.) to be “commodities”, and reserve the term “waste” for residue or material which is dumped by the buyer rather than recycled, including residue from reuse and recycling operations.

Because loads of surplus electronics are frequently commingled (good, recyclable, and non-recyclable), several public policy advocates apply the term “e-waste” broadly to all surplus electronics.

Cathode ray tubes (CRTs) are considered one of the hardest types to recycle.^[1]