According to a study carried out by Ipsos-Mori for the environmental activist foundation Greenpeace, PC users are willing to pay up to $197 (€156, £108) more for a PC containing less harmful chemicals, to make the recycling process easier.
Chinese users were willing to pay the most, hitting the $197 mark whereas UK users are only prepared to pay $117 for the planet's sake.
Whether the study's results would be mirrored in reality is another matter however, despite the mounting mountain of electronic waste generated as the technological world speeds along at its usual pace. Old computer components, cases, monitors and peripherals all contain harmful chemicals such as mercury in switches, arsenic in older CRT monitors and lead in solder.
The problem surrounding the recycling of older PCs exists due to the difficulty of destroying these aging components, with the vast number of harmful chemicals within.
Perhaps the revolution is nigh, however, as computer manufacturer Dell has announced its commitment to removing all brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) by 2009. It seems other companies have finally woken up and smelled the chromium as Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Hewlett Packard have each pledged to reducing the number of chemicals in their products.
What do you think? How much would you be prepared to pay in order to aid the recycling process?
