3 Ways Young Entrepreneurs Can Make Money by Recycling Electronic Waste

Production of e-waste exceeds ordinary household waste by up to three-folds. The damning statistics can make any budding environmentalist quiver with fear. Mass production of electronic gadgets such as laptops, smart phones, and television sets threatens to choke the environment with waste. Such appliances contain toxic materials such as cadmium and mercury.  If you plan to replace or upgrade an electronic device, you should consider turning the old one into a valuable component. Recycling not only puts money in your pocket, but it also goes a long way in conserving the environment. Here are a few ways that young entrepreneurs can adopt to make money through e-waste recycling.

Become a Collector -- There are multiple ways you can turn electronic waste into profit. The entry-level phase of e-recycling is by becoming a collector. You can start off without any money by moving from home to home collecting 'dead' electric devices and appliances. In fact, you will be amazed by how many families will be relieved when you take the 'junk' off their hands. You can then load the items into a vehicle and take them to a local e-waste collection point. You will be paid depending on factors such as usability, condition, and weight of the items.  

Start e-Waste Collection Depot -- Many companies are now amenable to the idea of accepting old gadgets such as broken laptops and phones, old televisions, and rechargeable laptop and camera batteries. If you are a budding business person, you should think big by opening your e-waste depot. After that, you can aggregate e-waste items from other collectors at a marginal cost and sell to large-scale recyclers at a profit. Alternatively, you can take out usable items and sell the components as replacement parts in electronic repair shops.

Primary Recycling --. Investing in the entire e-waste management value chain requires a substantial amount of capital, which might be a challenge for budding entrepreneurs. However, young business people can focus on one aspect of recycling. For instance, at the primary recycling stage, the e-waste is mechanically separated to reduce the chances of harmful products finding their way into a local landfill. At this juncture, an entrepreneur can make money by selling usable parts to electronic manufacturers or third party vendors in the sector. Most importantly, whichever level you wish to enter the electronic recycling industry, you will be playing the noble role of protecting the environment from tonnes of waste that endangers fragile ecosystems.