Computer Industry and Environment: Top Social or Environmental Issues - Assignment Example

By this time span, the computer industries started to grow due to the continuous increase in the demand for computers in multiple dimensions. Computer manufacturing companies like Apple Incorporated became a market giant from a personal computer manufacturers. Other companies also stood out throughout the time in the business of the computer industry (Allan, 2001).

As it became a very successful business, a number of companies started to manufacture computers to make the most profit out of it. The significant increase in the production of computers has resulted in severe damage to the environment. Manufacturing computers is intensive materially. The amount of total fossil fuel used to produce one desktop computer is more than 240 kilograms. It is very high in comparison with other manufactured goods such as a car or a refrigerator, which can be produced in nearly the same amount of fossil fuels. The amount of electricity required to make one computer is about 2300 kilowatt-hours which translates into 740 kilograms of fossil fuels. The quantity of other chemicals which are used in the production of one computer is about 22 kilograms, and 1500 kilograms of water is also utilized. The problems related to the use of fossil fuels like the change in climate, water deficiency in several areas, and chemicals are serious and deserve proper attention (Kuehr & Williams, 2003).

After the production of the computer, it is still harmful to the environment because of the consumption of electricity which is required to operate it. When it is not in use any longer it becomes waste which adds up to the total waste output. The computer also contains some chemicals which are hazardous to the environment if these are disposed of. The biggest threat those chemicals can be are contaminated water and air which cause severe health problems. Pollution is another important factor that is produced as a by-product of the production of computers. The computer industry also requires chemical industries and plastic industries necessarily to produce computers which again increases the pollution of the ecosystem. It shows the interconnectedness of the computer industry and environmental aspects (Hitchens, Clausen, & Klaus, 1999).

The production of computers is a massive profit statement for large multinationals that manufacture the materials required in the making of computers. The total amount of material sent down to the market is controlled by those large multinationals. The production of those materials is the result of many exploited workers who work in a highly toxic unhealthy environment. But the entire benefit of the whole scenario goes to the stakeholders (Pickerill, 2003).

There is some legislation formed to avoid the possible damage from the waste in which The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) is included. This is to reduce the amount of electronic or electrical waste by different means.  There is another legislation in Maine i.e. The Producer Responsibility which is about the responsibility of the producer of any monitor or screen to be taken back after its life and recycled in a proper manner so it no longer harms the environment. This directly affects the stakeholders which are involved in the computer industry such as the raw material manufacturers or the software developers who can be at stake with any possibility regarding the reduced production of computers in the future.   (Hester & Harrison, 2009). The strategy raw material manufacturers should make to decrease the risks by implementing plants for the proper disposal of the waste and recycling process. Giant manufacturers like Apple, Hewlett Packard, Dell, and Lenovo are using green technology which is environmentally friendly and reduce the damage to the environment at an impressive rate (Claire, 2011).     

The realization of the damage done to the environment is a huge developmental proceeding of sciences. The interlinked nature of the environment and industries is a certain fact that cannot be neglected. The business of the computer industry only can be safe if the manufacturers continue to put efforts into reducing the damage to the environment. It should be the duty of the companies to manage the recycling and proper disposal of the toxic items which are a threat to this world. The Computer Industry cannot be stopped because of the need for this machine in today’s world but their production is always at stake because the environment is a more significant issue than the computer.